Brad Lomax—Black Disability Rights Leader

We rarely think of the link between the Black Civil Rights Movement and the Disability Rights Movement, but for students to have role models who have experienced the world as both Black and disabled persons, that intersection is important.

One such person was Brad Lomax—a Black wheelchair user with multiple sclerosis. Unable to access public transportation on his own, his brother would lift him and his wheelchair onto the bus so he could get around. In 1977, Lomax joined the San Francisco 504 Sit-In—a month-long occupation to lobby for implementation of the regulations of section 504 of the Disability Rights Act—and obtained the critical help from the Black Panther Party to bring daily hot meals during the peaceful protest.

With financial support from the Black Panthers, Lomax went with a small group of protesters to Washington, D.C. to continue lobbying for 504. Their efforts were successful, and Health and Education Welfare Secretary Joseph Califano signed the 504 regulations into law on April 28, 1977.

Why is this important to you as an educator? In the world of transition, Section 504 provides protections and accommodations for students as they move from high school to the postsecondary education world. Knowing disability history is necessary for your students to understand the struggle needed to secure disability laws. All students—not only students with disabilities—benefit from learning the history of disability and seeing the achievements gained by fearless advocates like Lomax.

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