What is Disability Pride Month?
Disability Pride month correlates with the passing of the Americans with Disabilities Act in July 1990. An article by Andrew Pulrang, a freelance writer with lifelong disabilities, describes Disability Pride Month, as “a month set aside - mostly unofficially but with some local proclamations - to focus attention on the disability community and celebrate the pride disabled people have as people with disabilities.”Facts about Disability Pride Month
- The first Disability Pride Day was held in Boston in 1990, the same year the Americans with Disabilities Act was signed.
- New York City observed the first official Disability Pride Month in July 2015, the ADA’s twenty-fifth anniversary.
- Disability Pride Month is celebrated in most major cities but is not nationally recognized yet.
- The Disability Pride Flag was created in 2019 by Ann Magill.
What is Disability Independence Day?
July 26 is National Disability Independence Day, a federally recognized day to celebrate the 1990 signing of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA).
How do I Learn More?
- A children’s book, We Move Together, was released as part of Disability Pride Month
- Listen to podcasts or read posts published by the Disability Visibility Project, an online community of disability advocates dedicated to creating, sharing, and amplifying disability media and culture.
- Attend an online event. Alaska Governor's Council on Disabilities & Special Education is hosting a five-day Virtual Disability Pride Celebration. This online event features a different nationally recognized guest speaker each day and an interview between the guest speaker and an advocate interviewer, July 26 through July 30, 2021, from 4:00 p.m. to 5:00 p.m. (EST)
- Learn more about Disability Pride Month and how to start a conversation using the Disability Pride Toolkit and Resource Guide.