March 5
KATIE HEALEY:
Hello and welcome to the Disability Daily Podcast! I’m your host, Katie, and over the past couple years, I’ve worked on a 365-day calendar that recognizes different folks and key moments in disability history each day of the year. I’m turning this into a quick daily podcast, and I’m excited to share this with you!
From well-known figures and innovative inventions to unsung heroes and landmark legislation, each episode reveals how people with disabilities have played a crucial role in our society.
Please subscribe to the podcast on Podbean, Apple Podcasts, or Spotify to learn along with me each day. To see the calendar, visit accessiblehighered.com/calendar or see this episode’s show notes for the link.
And with that, let’s dive in!
Today we celebrate Lex Frieden (born March 5, 1949) who is a disability rights advocate, policy leader, and educator who played a crucial role in shaping disability legislation in the United States, including the Americans with Disabilities Act. A quadriplegic since a car accident at age 18, Frieden has spent decades working to advance civil rights, accessibility, and independent living for disabled people.
Frieden was instrumental in the development of the ADA, serving as executive director of the National Council on Disability when the council issued its landmark 1986 report recommending comprehensive civil rights legislation for disabled Americans. This report laid the foundation for the ADA, which was signed into law in 1990. Throughout his career, he has held leadership roles in numerous disability rights organizations, including the Independent Living Movement and the Association of University Centers on Disabilities.
In addition to his policy work, Frieden is a distinguished professor at the University of Texas Health Science Center and directs the Independent Living Research Utilization program in Houston. His research and advocacy focus on accessibility, healthcare, employment, and independent living for disabled people.
Recognized for his contributions, Frieden has received numerous honors, including an appointment by President George W. Bush as chair of the National Council on Disability and a Henry B. Betts Award for disability leadership. His work continues to shape disability policy and advocacy, ensuring that disabled people have greater access to education, employment, and public life.
Frieden also hosts a show called Focus on Abilities. The YouTube channel is linked in today’s show notes.
And Chuzo Okuda, born March 5, 1948, in Hokkaido, Japan became deaf at the age of four. In 1966, he moved to the Wisconsin School for the Deaf to study English and American Sign Language (ASL) before continuing his education at Gallaudet University, where he earned a degree in mathematics.
In the summer of 1980, Okuda made history when he earned a Ph.D. in mathematics from Penn State University, becoming the first deaf Japanese student to receive a doctorate. He and his thesis advisor communicated through written notes on a blackboard.
Okuda later taught mathematics and computer science at Gallaudet University for six years before transitioning to a career as a Software Engineer at Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory, where he worked until his retirement in 2013. He died of liver cancer in 2018.
Thanks so much for listening today! See the episode show notes for sources to learn more and to access the episode transcript.
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Thanks!