ADA25: #4 of 25 -- Title II (03:40)

Happy Fourth of July! Today, NAD Attorney Caroline Jackson takes a moment to explain Title II of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA). View the entire #ADA25 series at www.nad.org/ADA25.

Video begins with an off white vintage background. Three black and white photos appear. First photo shows a group of people marching, one holds a NAD poster. Second photo shows another group of people marching, one holds a poster "We Shall Overcome." Third photo shows President Bush signing the Americans with Disabilities Act. Text appears "ADA25 -- Americans with Disabilities Act". Video flashes to white then to Caroline Jackson inside NAD Headquarters. On bottom left corner, "#ADA25" appears as a light watermark. On bottom right corner, the NAD logo appears, also as a light watermark. 

CAROLINE: Title II of the ADA applies to “public entities” and what they must do to meet the needs of deaf and hard of hearing people. It means one of three things (1) any state or local government; (2) any department, etc., under a state or local government (for example, police, state-run hospitals, state-run universities, etc.); and (3) any “commuter authority” (this covers public transit). The language of Title II says that public entities shall not discriminate against any qualified individual with a disability. There are more rules under Title II that explain that discriminate means refusing to ensure effective communication, refusing to change policies to match people with disabilities, refusing to remove obstacles that prevent people with disabilities (usually wheelchairs) from moving around, and any other kind of discrimination (e.g., treating somebody worse because they are blind). The “effective communication” provision in Title II is special. In Title III, the ADA requires businesses to provide what a deaf person needs for effective communication (e.g., writing, interpreter, CART, etc.). But it doesn’t require the business to ask the deaf person their opinion or to follow what they say. Title II has different rules, and it requires public entities to ask the deaf person their opinion and to provide that choice if possible. Two different federal agencies are responsible to make sure that public entities comply with Title II: the US Department of Justice (DOJ) and the US Department of Transportation (DOT). The DOJ looks at general public entities, such as police, prisons, hospitals, universities, etc. The DOT looks transportation issues, such as buses or trains not being accessible. If a person with a disability complains to the DOJ or DOT about discrimination, each agency has the power to investigate and punish the public entity.

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