[Federal Register Volume 79, Number 147 (Thursday, July 31, 2014)]
[Presidential Documents]
[Pages 44251-44252]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2014-18143]


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  Federal Register / Vol. 79 , No. 147 / Thursday, July 31, 2014 / 
Presidential Documents  

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 Title 3--
 The President

[[Page 44251]]

                Proclamation 9148 of July 25, 2014

                
Anniversary of the Americans with Disabilities 
                Act, 2014

                By the President of the United States of America

                A Proclamation

                Over two decades ago, Americans--some in wheelchairs, 
                some using sign language, and all with an abiding 
                belief in our Nation's promise--came together to 
                strengthen our commitment to equality for all. At a 
                time when people with disabilities were turned away at 
                movie theaters, rejected for employment, and measured 
                by what so many thought they could not do, leaders and 
                activists refused to accept the world as it was. In 
                small towns and big cities, they spoke out. They staged 
                sit-ins, authored discrimination diaries, and scaled 
                the Capitol steps. Finally, they realized their call 
                for simple justice in one of the most comprehensive 
                civil rights bills in our country's history. On the 
                anniversary of the Americans with Disabilities Act 
                (ADA), we honor those who fought against 
                discrimination, and we recommit to tearing down 
                barriers and guaranteeing all Americans the right to 
                pursue their own measure of happiness.

                The ADA promises equal access and equal opportunity--
                regardless of ability. It secures each person's right 
                to an independent life, and it enables our country and 
                our economy to benefit from the talents and 
                contributions of all Americans.

                Even as we commemorate this milestone, we recognize 
                that too often, casual discrimination or fear of the 
                unfamiliar still prevent disabled Americans from 
                achieving their full potential. That is why my 
                Administration is pushing to fulfill the promise of and 
                better enforce the ADA. Fifteen years after the 
                Olmstead decision--in which the Supreme Court ruled it 
                discrimination to unjustifiably institutionalize 
                someone with a disability--we have increased the number 
                of homes integrated into communities that are available 
                for persons with disabilities. Under the Affordable 
                Care Act, insurance companies are banned from 
                discriminating on the basis of pre-existing conditions, 
                medical history, or genetic information. Expanding on 
                my Executive Order to establish the Federal Government 
                as a model employer of individuals with disabilities, 
                my Administration is also providing Federal contractors 
                with the tools and resources to recruit, retain, and 
                promote people with disabilities.

                The nearly one in five Americans living with a 
                disability are our parents, children, neighbors, 
                colleagues, and friends. They are entitled to the same 
                rights and freedoms as everyone else. Today, we 
                celebrate their accomplishments, stand against 
                discrimination in all its forms, and honor all who 
                sacrificed so future generations might know a more 
                equal society.

                NOW, THEREFORE, I, BARACK OBAMA, President of the 
                United States of America, by virtue of the authority 
                vested in me by the Constitution and the laws of the 
                United States, do hereby proclaim July 26, 2014, the 
                Anniversary of the Americans with Disabilities Act. I 
                encourage Americans across our Nation to celebrate the 
                24th anniversary of this civil rights law and the many 
                contributions of individuals with disabilities.

[[Page 44252]]

                IN WITNESS WHEREOF, I have hereunto set my hand this 
                twenty-fifth day of July, in the year of our Lord two 
                thousand fourteen, and of the Independence of the 
                United States of America the two hundred and thirty-
                ninth.
                
                
                    (Presidential Sig.)

[FR Doc. 2014-18143
Filed 7-30-14; 8:45 am]
Billing code 3295-F4