Disability Pride Month


Disability Pride Month occurs worldwide, usually in July. Disability Pride has evolved from a day of celebration to a month-long event.
It originated in the United States to commemorate the passing of the landmark Americans with Disabilities Act in July 1990. Disabled people make up 15% of the world's population representing all ages, races, ethnicities, genders, sexual orientations, religions, and socio-economic backgrounds.
Disability Pride Month celebrates people with disabilities, their identities, their culture, and their contributions to society. It also seeks to change the way people think about and define disability, to end the stigma of disability, and to promote the belief that disability is a natural part of human diversity in which people living with disabilities can celebrate and take pride. It is a chance for people with disabilities to come together and celebrate being themselves, no matter their differences. It is also a chance to raise awareness of the challenges they still face every day to be treated equally.

History

United States

On March 12, 1990, over 1,000 people marched from the White House to the U.S. Capitol to demand that Congress pass the Americans with Disabilities Act. Upon arrival, about 60 activists, including eight-year-old Jennifer Keelan-Chaffins, physically demonstrated the inaccessibility of public spaces by getting out of their wheelchairs or setting aside their mobility aids and crawling up the Capitol steps in an act of civil disobedience that later became known as the Capitol Crawl. Police then arrested 104 activists for unlawful demonstration, many of whom were in their wheelchairs.
On July 26, 1990, President George H. W. Bush signed the Americans with Disabilities Act into law. Each July is celebrated as Disability Pride Month in commemoration of the historic moment.

United Kingdom

England, Scotland and Wales have a similar law that was passed in 1995 called the Disability Discrimination Act, that was itself replaced by the Equality Act in 2010. People in Northern Ireland are protected by the Disability Discrimination Act 1995.

Disability Pride

The concept of Disability Pride was born out of the Disability Rights movement and based on intersectional identity politics and social justice. The core concept of Disability Pride is based on a tenet of reworking the negative narratives and biases that frequently surround the concept of disability. Disability Pride is a response and counteraction against ableism and social stigma. The concept has roots in the same social theory that backs LGBT Pride and Black Pride. Disability Pride is a movement intended to celebrate the history of the Disability Rights movement and disabled people as positive contributors to society. It marks a break from traditional concepts of disabilities as shameful conditions, which were often hidden from public spaces and mainstream awareness. Disability Pride is built upon the social model of disability and is described as moving away from the medical model of disability.

Locations

Disability Pride is celebrated worldwide, including in the United Kingdom, South Africa, and other countries during various times of the year. Other Disability Pride Celebrations have occurred in England, Germany, New Zealand, Norway, Switzerland, and South Korea.
CountryCity# of ParadesFirst ParadeLast Parade
New ZealandWellington12021-
SwitzerlandZürich52016-
United KingdomBrighton, England32017-
United KingdomMansfield, England12023
United KingdomChester, England12023-
United KingdomLeeds, England12023
United KingdomReading, England12023-
United KingdomBelfast, Northern Ireland12014-
United StatesBoston, MA219902014
United StatesChicago, IL222004-
United StatesMountain View, CA520102014
United StatesColumbia, MO12010-
United StatesLogan, UT12010-
United StatesDavis, CA12010-
United StatesTrenton, NJ520112015
United StatesPhiladelphia, PA112012-
United StatesColorado Springs, CO12012-
United StatesNacogdoches, TX420142017
United StatesColumbus, OH12014-
United StatesNew York, NY52015-
United StatesAtlanta, GA12015-
United StatesBuffalo, NY220162017
United StatesLos Angeles, CA22016-
United StatesPittsburgh, PA12022-
United StatesBloomington, Illinois220212022
United StatesLehigh Valley, Pennsylvania12023-
United StatesHarrisburg, Pennsylvania12022-

Celebration and Recognition

US

People with disabilities make the largest and most diverse minority in the United States making up approximately 26% of the population. As of 2022, Disability Pride Month is not yet nationally recognized in the United States.
The celebration has been officially recognized by New York City mayor Bill de Blasio and San Francisco mayor London Breed.
A Disability Pride Parade is held annually to celebrate Disability Pride Month in Chicago, Los Angeles, New York, San Francisco, San Antonio, Philadelphia, and Pittsburgh, among other places. Disability Pride Parades often hold traditions unique to the location, like a disability justice flag raise at city hall and a full week of free events in Philadelphia.

Boston, Massachusetts

The first Disability Pride Day was held October 6, 1990 in Boston, Massachusetts. According to a newspaper clipping from the day, "more than 400 people marched, drove, wheeled and moved from City Hall to Boston Common in a demonstration to affirm that 'far from tragic, disability is a natural part of the human experience.'" The featured speaker was Karen Thompson, author of Why Can't Sharon Kowalski Come Home? It was held again in 1991 but ended after that due to the death of lead organizer, Diana Viets, and with the move of co-organizer Catherine Odette to Madison, Wisconsin.

Chicago, Illinois

The first Chicago Disability Pride Parade was the first such parade in the United States after the Boston-based parades of the 1990s. It was held July 18, 2004 in Chicago with Yoshiko Dart as the Parade Grand Marshal. The first Chicago parade was funded with $10,000 in seed money that Sarah Triano received in 2003 as part of the Paul G. Hearne Leadership award from the American Association of People with Disabilities. According to Triano, fifteen hundred people attended the parade. Disability Pride Parades have been held in Chicago each subsequent July with a theme and a grand marshal each year with the exception of 2020 and 2021 due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Chicago Disability Pride Parade DateThemeGrand Marshal
July 18, 2004Unified in PrideYoshiko Dart
July 23, 2005Unity Builds CommunitySteven Brown
July 22, 2006Celebrating Disability Arts and CultureRobert David Hall
July 21, 2007Celebrating Worldwide: Disabled, Proud, Present, DiverseKathy Martinez
July 26, 2008Pride Realized Is Destiny EmpoweredTony Coelho
July 25, 2009Changing to PrideAmber Smock
July 24, 2010Pride RevolutionEli Clare
July 23, 2011Disability Pride is ContagiousCatherine Odette
July 21, 2012Disability Pride: Today, Tomorrow, and ForeverLinda Miller
July 20, 201310th Year of Chicago Disability Pride ParadeKaren Meyer
July 19, 2014Love Life and Live GreenGary Arnold
July 18, 2015On the Road to FreedomTom Harkin
July 23, 2016Inclusion MattersKris Lenzo
July 22, 2017Love is Disability Pride
Karen Tamley, Kevin Irvine, and their daughter Domenika
July 21, 2018Disability Equality is Long OverdueBrittany King
July 20, 2019Disability Pride is Social JusticeGinger Lane
July 23, 2022Disability Pride is Back and Stronger than EverAlec Cabacungan
July 22, 2023Disability Pride Will Not Be DeniedConstantine "Gus" Zografopoulos
July 20, 2024Chicago Disability Pride Parade 20th AnniversaryGenevieve Ramos
July 26, 202535 Years of the ADA: Still Rising, Still Thriving!Rachel Arfa

The Chicago Disability Pride Parade describes the goals of its celebration in its mission statement:
  • To change the way people think about and define "disability",
  • To break down and end the internalized shame among people with Disabilities; and
  • To promote the belief in society that Disability is a natural and beautiful part of human diversity in which people living with Disabilities can take pride.