A Disability History of the United States

Content Warning: This section discusses ableism, racism, enslavement, and mental illness. The source text’s use of outdated and offensive terms is replicated only in quotations.

Almshouses were charitable housing facilities that began to be in regular use by the end of the colonial period in America. According to Nielsen, these met many community needs but were “a general dumping ground for all those unable to support themselves financially” (37).

The Americans With Disabilities Act, or ADA, is described by Nielsen as “the best-known civil rights legislation for those with disabilities” (180). She explains that at the time of its passage in 1990, it impacted an estimated 43 million people. The ADA built upon the Architectural Barriers Act of 1968, the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act of 1975, and even the Civil Rights Act of 1964.

In Chapter 6, Nielsen describes eugenics as “the belief that the way to improve society is through better human breeding practices so that only those with ‘positive’ hereditary traits reproduce” (101). Although eugenics was widely discredited by many scientists, it was embraced by many at the turn of the 20th century. Supporters of eugenics believed that criminality, immorality, and “feeble-mindedness” were hereditary, as were responsibility and leadership (101).