News

ABA and BBI study finds prevalent reports of discrimination faced by disabled, LGBTQ+ lawyers

Professor Peter Blanck, chairman of the Burton Blatt Institute and lead author of the study, said “the longer-term objective (of the study) is to help measurably enhance the professional lives of lawyers and others in the profession by understanding and mitigating pernicious sources of attitudinal stigma and structural bias.”

Lawyers who either identify as having disabilities or who identify as LGBTQ+ report experiencing both subtle and overt forms of discrimination at their workplaces, with common reports of subtle but unintentional biases. The findings come from a new national study released today by the American Bar Association, in collaboration with the Burton Blatt Institute at Syracuse University. Continue Reading

BBI Chairman Peter Blanck’s Keynote NYU Law Students Symposium on 30 Years of the Americans with Disabilities Act

New York, NY: On Friday, September 25, at 4 p.m. the Disability Allied Law Students Association (DALSA) at the New York University School of Law virtually hosted Dr. Peter Blanck to celebrate the 30th anniversary of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA). Dr. Blanck’s address  reflected on the current state of disability law in the U.S., with a particular focus on COVID-19, and intersections with criminal justice, poverty, and race.
Read the full address here
View the recordings here
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The Southeast ADA Center Broadcast the “ADA Live!” Episode 83b: Celebrate. Learn. Share. The ADA turns 30. The Future of Disability Rights with Lex Frieden

What better way to celebrate the 30th ADA anniversary than with the “chief architect” of the Americans with Disabilities Act, Lex Frieden.  Mr. Frieden is a well-known disability rights activist and a leader in the independent living movement.  He is a professor of biomedical informatics and rehabilitation at the University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston. He also directs the Independent Living Research Utilization (ILRU) program at TIRR Memorial Hermann Hospital in Houston, home of the Southwest ADA Center, one of ten regional ADA centers in the ADA National Network.  From 2002 until 2006, he served by appointment of President George W. Bush as Chairman of the National Council on Disability (NCD). Continue Reading

Thirty for Thirtieth ADA Anniversary

As we near the thirtieth anniversary of the Americans with Disabilities Act, Stephen Kuusisto, Director of the Office of Interdisciplinary Programs and Outreach located in the Burton Blatt Institute, is posting thirty short essays about the law, the anniversary, and the cultural impact of #ADA@30. According to Stephen, “I’m doing this as a disabled person who’s lived half his life before the ADA. I’m reflecting on the ‘before and after’ of the law.” Continue Reading

BBI to co-host national symposium of leading law schools titled “Call to Action: Creating a Disability-Inclusive Law School Environment”

Our purpose is to convene the top law schools in the nation working on disability inclusiveness, accessibility, and campus climate to share ideas and resources, identify existing challenges and barriers, and ultimately form a taskforce that works toward a more disability inclusive future in legal education. We seek to deepen our conversations on the intersection of disability and race with particular attention to (1) how ableism and racism function together; (2) racial disparities in COVID-19 that impact our students of color; (3) race-based trauma; and, (4) the need to combat anti-blackness in disability advocacy. Continue Reading

The Southeast ADA Center Will Broadcast the “ADA Live!” Episode 83: The ADA Then and Now: Celebrate ADA 30th Anniversary with the Honorable Tony Coelho

Wednesday – July 1, 2020
ADA30 – Celebrate. Learn. Share.  The ground-breaking civil rights law, the Americans with Disabilities Act, turns thirty in 2020.  What better way to celebrate than a conversation with the chief sponsor of the ADA bill in the House of Representatives, the Honorable Tony Coelho.

Mr. Coelho is a lifelong advocate for the rights of people with disabilities and as someone with a disability who has faced discrimination, Tony shares his unique perspective on how the ADA has made an impact in the lives of people with disabilities.  Mr. Coelho has had a distinguished career as a Congressman including serving as Chair of the President’s Committee on the Employment of People with Disabilities from 1994 until 2001. He currently serves as Chairman of the Epilepsy Foundation. Continue Reading

Barry Whaley, Director of Southeast ADA Center, Giving Keynote Presentation at National APSE Conference

On Thursday June 17th, Barry Whaley, M.S., Project Director of Southeast ADA Center a project of the Burton Blatt Institute at Syracuse University; Founding Board Member and Past President of Kentucky APSE; will be delivering the closing keynote speech at the National Association of People Supporting Employment First (APSE) 2020 Conference. The theme of the APSE conference is “Employment Fist Elevated”. To commemorate the 30-year anniversary of the signing of the Americans with Disabilities Act, Whaley will reflect on significant events and leaders of the disability rights movement in their long yet rewarding journey towards equality. Continue Reading

Burton Blatt Institute, UK University Begin Study of Inclusive Public Spaces and Accessibility of Streets

The Burton Blatt Institute at Syracuse University has begun a collaboration with the University of Leeds in the United Kingdom focusing on groundbreaking research into the accessibility of public spaces and the social justice problems resulting from an exclusionary infrastructure.

The Inclusive Public Space project is a global interdisciplinary research effort that explores the social justice problems caused by city streets that limit access for some pedestrians. The project focuses specifically on pedestrians with disabilities who may have difficulties using the pedestrian paths because of the way streets are designed, managed or maintained. Poor maintenance, uneven surfaces, potholes, poor lighting and other streetscape structures also create barriers. Continue Reading

The Southeast ADA Center Will Broadcast the “ADA Live!” Episode 82: History and the Future of Disability Rights: A Conversation with Judy Heumann

Wednesday – June 3, 2020

Join us in a powerful and noteworthy conversation about the history and the future of the disability rights movement in celebration of the Olmstead Decision and the 30th ADA Anniversary.

Judy Heumann is an author, disability rights leader, founder of the World Institute on Disability, former Assistant Secretary of the Office of Special Education and Rehabilitation Services (OSSERS), former Special Advisor on Disability Rights for the U.S. State Department, and subject of the documentary Crip Camp. Judy will be our honored guest for this ADA Live! podcast, and the host will be Peter Blanck, Ph.D., J.D.,and University Professor & Chairman of the Burton Blatt Institute at Syracuse University. Continue Reading