Judy Heumann, best known for her involvement in fighting for the rights of disabled people, has passed away at the age of 75. She passed away in Washington DC. The family has still not released the cause of death. But her brother, Rick Heumann, confirmed that she had been in the hospital for a good week and had multiple heart issues which might have stemmed from the polio attack she had in her childhood which eventually made her lose her ability to walk at the age of 2.
Who was Judy Heumann?
Being a quadriplegic from a very young age, Heumann’s fight began when she was not prohibited to work as a teacher in New York City, owing to her disability. In the 1970s, she won a lawsuit against the New York Board of Education and proceeded to become the first teacher who used a wheelchair. That was a milestone in her life which propelled her to fight for all in her community.
Slowly, she started becoming the woman who was the face of the major disability rights movement, and this movement slowly played an important role in changing the lives for a lot of the disabled community. She was eventually more known among her community as ‘The Mother of Disability Rights’ because of her immense contribution to the disabled community. She was also instrumental in the founding of many nationals as well as international advocacy groups.
Judy Heumann and her various protests
Again, in 1972, Heumann along with a group of DIA activists shut down the traffic on Madison Avenue, at the time of Nixon’s re-election campaign, just outside the headquarters. Their main objective was to garner attention for Nixon’s veto of the Rehabilitation Act of 1972. That Act aimed to expand programs to support and help people with disabilities. Nixon ultimately ended up signing the Rehabilitation Act in 1973.
She had also greatly contributed to the establishment of the American with Disabilities Act, as she participated in a 24-day sit-in at a San Francisco federal building in 1977. This sit-in is famously known as the ‘longest non-violent occupation’ of an American federal building.These are just some instances among the countless wars of bravery that Heumann had waged to garner support and justice for her people and to ensure that they live a life of equality and peace.
Heumann also played a humongous role in both the Obama and Clinton administrations, where she was instrumental as she advised the government on how to bring about changes which would make their lives better. Tributes from Obama and other celebrities poured in their condolences upon her death on social media.
She met her husband Jorge Pineda at a program of a disability rights nonprofit. He also was in a wheelchair and was also attending the nonprofit. They got married in less than a year after they first met.
Judy Heumann and the fame she garnered at the end
According to an interview that she gave to a reporter in 1987, she said that she does not view her disability as a ‘tragedy’. Instead, it only becomes a tragedy for her and the people of her community when they are not provided basic amenities like job opportunities or ramps installed in public areas.
Heumann really captured the attention of the public with the release of her autobiography in 2020, called ‘Being Heumann: An Unrepentant Memoir of a Disability Rights Activist’ which she co-authored with Krusten Joiner. From then, even Heumann knew that her getting recognition translated to an entire community getting recognition and support from the public. She even famously remarked that ‘We’re simmering to a boil’ when asked about her work and her community getting more and more spotlight in the public eye.