(Newswire.net — September 18, 2014) New York, NY — Hon Tony Coelho, author of the Americans with Disabilities Act invited by Dr Teri Rouse gave the faculty and students at Chestnut Hill College in Philadelphia PA an update on the ADA and it’s affects on the public as well as the disability community.
Dr Debra Chiaradonna, Chair, Division of Teacher Education and Leadership and Dr Teri Rouse, Assistant Professor of Education, Special Education, were coordinating their efforts for the better part of the last year to make this happen.
After graduating from Loyola University he applied to the Priesthood where his longstanding seizure disorder was officially diagnosed as Epilepsy. Due to Canon law he was rejected from the Priesthood because of his epilepsy.
He eventually worked for Bob Hope for a number of years. It was Bob Hope that suggested that he go into politics.
Tony Coelho was elected to the 96th Congress representing California’s 15th District. He was later elected to the five succeeding Congresses where he served as the Majority Whip until 1989. He served on the Agriculture, Interior, Veterans Affairs, and Administration Committees during his tenure, but he specialized in disabled rights.
He was able to build a bipartisan consensus on the Americans with Disability Act for which he was the primary author. It was signed into law on July 26, 1990, by President George H. W. Bush, and later amended with changes effective January 1, 2009
While on a Congressional tour, Tony met with the Pope in Vatican City and in an unscripted moment mentioned the canon law problem that had prevented him from becoming a Priest. Although Tony denies any credit for it, strangely enough canon law was changed and that section was removed or amended.
The ADA is a wide-ranging civil rights law that prohibits discrimination based on disability. The ADA also requires covered employers to provide reasonable accommodations to employees with disabilities, and imposes accessibility requirements on public accommodations
The ADA includes both mental and physical medical conditions. A condition does not need to be severe or permanent to be a disability. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission regulations provide a list of conditions that should easily be concluded to be disabilities: deafness, blindness, an intellectual disability (formerly termed mental retardation), partially or completely missing limbs or mobility impairments requiring the use of a wheelchair, autism, cancer, cerebral palsy, diabetes, epilepsy, Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV) infection, multiple sclerosis, muscular dystrophy, major depressive disorder, bipolar disorder, post-traumatic stress disorder, obsessive compulsive disorder, and schizophrenia.
Tony explained, “We’re grateful for what’s been done, we focus on the positives of what has been accomplished, knowing that there’s so much more to do to help people.”
While Tony was giving the faculty and students the update on the ADA Sen. Tom Harkin, D-Iowa, took to the Senate floor calling for a unanimous consent vote on the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (CRPD).
Shortly after his talk Tony received a call and was advised that Sen Tom Harkin had requested two hours of debate on the treaty with no amendments followed by an up-or-down vote much like the Senate did two years ago.
Within minutes, however, the plan was shot down with an objection from Sen. Mike Lee, R-Utah, who said that two hours of debate was insufficient and indicated that amendments should be allowed.
“There are a number of our colleagues, both on and off the committee, who have concerns with this treaty,” Lee said.
The U.N. Convention, which establishes an international standard for disability rights similar to what’s already in place domestically through the Americans with Disabilities Act, was signed by the United States in 2009, but Senate approval is needed for ratification and official participation.
A broad coalition of over 750 U.S. disability, civil rights, faith, business, and veteran organizations support the U.S. ratification of the treaty, holding that American leadership in this arena is critical to the ultimate success of the treaty. These are just some of the supporters of the treaty.
**American business sector organizations support ratification of the CRPD, including the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, the U.S. Business Leadership Network, and the Information Technology Industry Council. Many U.S. companies including IBM, AT&T, Adobe, and JP Morgan Chase support ratification.
**Major veteran service organizations, representing veterans of every generation, support ratification of the CRPD. These groups recognize that our 5.5 million American veterans with disabilities will have greater opportunities to work, study, and travel abroad as countries implement the CRPD with leadership from the U.S.
**Republican leaders on disability legislation support ratification of the CRPD including former President George H.W. Bush, former Senator Bob Dole, former Attorney General Dick Thornburgh and former White House Counsel C. Boyden Gray.
However, critics with specious arguments, spearheaded by the Home School Legal Defense Association contend that the treaty would compromise U.S. sovereignty.
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