THE VFA PIONEER HISTORIES PROJECT

Judith “Judy” Heumann

December 18, 1947 – March 4, 2023

“For we are leaders of inclusiveness and community, of love, equity and justice.”

Disability rights activist, “Mother of the Disability Rights Movement”. Sued Board of Education for discrimination, 1970. Became first wheelchair user to teach in New York City. Founder, Disabled in Action (DIA), 1970. Helped develop Individuals with Disabilities Education Act, 1974. Deputy director, Berkeley’s Center for Independent Living, 1975-1982. Helped organize 28-day “504 Sit-In” protest, San Francisco office, U.S. Department of Health, Education and Welfare, 1977. Co-founder and co-director, World Institute on Disability, 1983-1993. Assistant Secretary, Office of Special Education and Rehabilitation Services, U.S. Department of Education, 1993-2001. First advisor and lead consultant, Disability and Development, World Bank Group, 2002-2006. First special advisor, International Disability Rights, U.S. State Department, 2010-2017. Senior Fellow, Ford Foundation, 2017-2019. Author, Being Huemann: An Unrepentant Memoir of a Disability Rights Activist, 2020. One of the main subjects of Oscar-nominated documentary, “Crip Camp,” 2020. Produced bi-weekly podcast, “The Heumann Perspective,” 2021. BS, Speech Therapy, Long Island University, 1969. MPH, UC Berkeley School of Public Health, 1975.

Photo. Judy Heumann, Time Magazine, 1977