1: Sit-ins, Supreme Court cases, and other stuff they didn’t teach you in school. This slide contains a black and white image of a person in a wheelchair. A sign on the back of their wheelchair says “Asking didn’t work.”
2: The Ugly Laws. 1867-1964. The Ugly Laws were a set of laws passed in cities and states across the U.S. that prohibited visibly disabled people from going out in public. These laws often permitted disabled people to perform in public as entertainment but prevented them from mingling with the public. The Ugly Laws were also tied to racism and discrimination against poor people. The last Ugly Law was repealed in 1974.
3: Buck v. Bell. 1927. This Supreme Court case challenged the forced sterilization of people with disabilities. Carrie Buck, who had been institutionalized, fought to prevent the state of Virginia from sterilizing her. The Court ruled to permit forced sterilization, using language that was horrifying and deeply ableist. Buck v. Bell remains the law today.