In the early 1970's a group of students at the University of California felt that the system was not meeting the needs of people with disabilities. Most of them were people with spinal cord injuries. They did not want to be merely rehabilitated and then segregated. They demanded adequate and accessible housing, transportation, and attendant care to enable them to live in the community of their choice. These same issues remain today.
Disability activists continue to work toward social change.
They work to establish laws and define policies that prevent discrimination and encourage integration. For people with disabilities, separate is not equal. Independent Living is a philosophy that challenges the social attitudes and physical barriers that stigmatize and exclude people with disabilities from the community. Better than anyone else, people with disabilities know what they want and what services they need to achieve their goals. Palmer's Hill Rd.