Once upon a time, the number 504 held the highest significance in the disability community of the United States. Before the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) was signed on July 26, 1990, the federal civil rights law that offered disabled Americans the most protection against discrimination was Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act. That law was enacted on September 26, 1973, so its fiftieth anniversary is fast approaching.
The Rehabilitation Act was signed into law by President Richard Nixon, after he vetoed it twice. But four years later, following President Jimmy Carter’s Inauguration, the federal government still had not issued regulations spelling out the details of Section 504. Thus, the law could not be enforced.
This delay infuriated disability rights activists so much that on April 5, 1977, protests were held around the country demanding that the regulations be released.
In San Francisco, protesters showed up at the regional office of the U.S. Department of Health, Education, and Welfare and they vowed not to leave until the demand was met. Various protesters ended up continuously occupying that office until satisfactory regulations were issued twenty-six days later.
Section 504 says that “No otherwise qualified individual with a disability in the United States . . . shall, solely by reason of his or her disability, be excluded from the participation in, be denied the benefits of, or be subjected to discrimination under any program or activity receiving Federal financial assistance. . .” or is conducted by any executive agency or the United States Postal Service.
Section 504 covered a lot of territory because pretty much every essential public entity—including hospitals, colleges, and universities—receives some sort of federal financial assistance. Before Section 504, for example, a college could refuse to admit someone with a disability just because they had a disability.
The law opened a lot of doors for disabled people. Then the ADA came along and expanded the obligation to not discriminate against disabled people to include most private entities, such as hotels and restaurants, even if they didn’t receive federal funding.
Even with the ADA, the Rehabilitation Act and Section 504 are still relevant today. Lawsuits that accuse entities of violating the ADA can include an additional accusation of a violation of Section 504 in cases where both laws are applicable.
Section 504 is of such monumental historical importance to generations of disabled Americans because it casts disability rights in the context of civil rights. In that regard, it paved the way for the ADA.
So, if you need a good excuse to drink a toast, go ahead and do so on September 26 in honor of fifty years of the Rehabilitation Act and Section 504.