A Conversation with John Wodatch – Part 1

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Description:

John Wodatch, a nationally recognized civil rights attorney specializing in the rights of persons with disabilities, with over 40 years of experience in the federal government, joins Dr. Peter Blanck to discuss how and why Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act became a law and the nationwide recognition that disabled people deserve equal rights. He reflects on the impact of the law and its timing, coming at about the same time as the Independent Living movement of the 1970s. He describes how Section 504 built upon the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and advanced disability rights in critical and important ways.

Mr. Wodatch discusses the ongoing debate surrounding Section 504 and looks at several court decisions. He explains the fundamental principles behind the law and how it is the legal foundation that protects the rights of people with disabilities in the United States.

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Summary

• How and why Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act became a law and the nationwide recognition that disabled people deserve equal rights.
• The impact of 504 and its timing, coming at about the same time as the Independent Living movement of the 1970s.
• Section 504 built upon the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and advanced disability rights in critical and important ways.
• The ongoing debate surrounding Section 504 and looks at several court decisions.
• The fundamental principles behind the law and how it is the legal foundation that protects the rights of people with disabilities in the United States.
• Wodatch describes the pushback against Section 504 and how it was viewed as a threat to deregulation.
• Discussion of other legislation, such as the Education of All Handicapped Children Act, now known as the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA).
• He describes the political debate that arose over disability rights in the context of the HIV and AIDS epidemic and critical court cases, including Alexander v. Choate in 1985, that also helped disability rights.
• The social changes that occurred partly because of the HIV and AIDS epidemic in the 1980s,
• “Although [Section] 504 was precedent-setting, important and foundational, it didn’t go far enough.” As Mr. Wodatch explains, policy makers first fought for a law that protected people with HIV and AIDS from discrimination and later for a law that addressed discrimination more broadly. This process eventually led to the passage of the Americans with Disabilities Act in 1990.

More about John Wodatch, Former, Chief Disability Rights Section at Civil Rights Division United States Department of Justice

John Wodatch is a disability rights attorney, with over 50 years specializing in the Americans with Disabilities Act and the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities. He served for 42 years in the Federal government, where he authored the government’s comprehensive disability rights regulations and created and led the Department of Justice’s office in charge of enforcing the ADA. He is one of the drafters of the Americans with Disabilities Act., serving as a member of the White House negotiating team and as the Department of Justice’s chief technical expert during the writing and passage of the ADA. He was also part of the U.S. delegation to the United Nations that helped develop the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities.

He was the chief author of the Department of Justice’s 1991 ADA regulations, created DOJ’s initial ADA technical assistance programs, and assembled the Department’s ADA enforcement staff. From 1990 until 2011 he served as the Director and Section Chief overseeing all interpretation, technical assistance, and enforcement of the ADA at the Department of Justice. Just before he retired, he was responsible for the first major revision of the Department’s ADA regulations, including the 2010 Standards for Accessible Design. He is also the chief author of the first Federal regulations implementing section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973.

In 2010 he was honored with the Presidential Distinguished Rank Award for exceptional achievement in his career.. He received a B.A. from Trinity College, an M.P.A. from Harvard University, and a J.D. from the Georgetown University Law School.