[Congressional Bills 111th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H. Res. 1759 Engrossed in House (EH)]

H. Res. 1759

                In the House of Representatives, U. S.,

                                                     December 15, 2010.
Whereas Edward Verne Roberts was born January 23, 1939;
Whereas Roberts acquired polio as an adolescent in 1953 and had to spend vast 
        expanses of time in an iron lung;
Whereas Roberts' career as an advocate began when a high school administrator 
        threatened to deny him a diploma because he had not completed driver's 
        education and physical education;
Whereas in 1962 Roberts was admitted to the University of California at Berkeley 
        (UC Berkeley) where he became the first student with a severe disability 
        to attend UC Berkeley;
Whereas when his search for housing at the university met resistance, the 
        director of the campus hospital offered Roberts a room in an empty wing, 
        which Roberts accepted on the condition that it was considered a 
        dormitory space;
Whereas other students with significant disabilities joined Roberts in the empty 
        wing over the next few years and called themselves the ``Rolling 
        Quads'';
Whereas at UC Berkeley the Rolling Quads began advocating for curb cuts, opening 
        access to the wider community and creating the first student-led 
        disability services program at a university in the Nation;
Whereas the student program led to the creation of the Nation's first center for 
        independent living;
Whereas Roberts assumed leadership of the Center for Independent Living, 
        Berkeley and guided its development as a model for disability advocacy 
        and self-help services across the Nation and around the world;
Whereas in 1975 Roberts was appointed the Director of the California Department 
        of Rehabilitation;
Whereas in 1983 Roberts co-founded the World Institute on Disability, an 
        organization committed to eliminating barriers to full social 
        integration for persons with disabilities;
Whereas Ed Roberts died from natural causes on March 14, 1995; and
Whereas Ed Roberts was a leader and champion in the disability rights movement: 
        Now, therefore, be it
    Resolved, That the House of Representatives--
            (1) supports the designation of an ``Ed Roberts Day''; and
            (2) acknowledges the accomplishments of Ed Roberts in helping reduce 
        barriers, increase access, and improve lives for persons with 
        disabilities.
            Attest:

                                                                          Clerk.