Thirty-Fourth Anniversary of the Americans with Disabilities Act

Today, we celebrate the 34th anniversary of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), which promotes greater participation for Americans with disabilities across society. At the signing of this legislation, President George H.W. Bush proclaimed, "let the shameful walls of exclusion finally come tumbling down." Today, the ADA continues to guide how the United States exemplifies disability inclusion, including in President Biden's Executive Order 14035 on Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Accessibility (DEIA) in the Federal Workforce ; Secretary Blinken's Modernization Agenda; and the U.S. Department of State's DEIA Strategic Plan.

The U.S. Department of State is committed to promoting disability inclusion both domestically and abroad. Internally, we have exceeded our Agency Priority Goal for hiring and retaining employees with disabilities, increasing the percentage of employees with a disability from 14.6% to 19.6% of our workforce in the past three years. Externally, we continue to promote respect for the rights and fundamental freedoms for persons with disabilities worldwide by engaging with our international partners to advance full and effective participation for persons with disabilities.

As we celebrate this ADA anniversary, we strengthen our resolve to advance the rights of the disability community and reinforce our efforts to promote more accessible, equitable, and inclusive societies everywhere we serve. The State Department is stronger, our country is safer, and Americans are more prosperous and more secure because of the efforts of people with disabilities.