I hope that my Administration will be remembered in this area for leading
the way toward full civil rights for handicapped Americans. When I took
office, no federal agency had yet issued 504 regulations. As I leave
office, this first step by every major agency and department in the federal
government is almost complete. But it is only a first step. The years ahead
will require steadfast dedication by the President to protect and promote
these precious rights in the classroom, in the workplace, and in all public
facilities so that handicapped individuals may join the American mainstream
and contribute to the fullest their resources and talents to our economic
and social life.
Just as we supported, in an unprecedented way, the civil rights of disabled
persons in schools and in the workplace, other initiatives in health
prevention, such as our immunization and nutrition programs for young
children and new intense efforts to reverse spinal cord injury, must
continue so that the incidence of disability continues to decline.
This year is the U.N.-declared International Year of Disabled Persons. We
are organizing activities to celebrate and promote this important
commemorative year within the government as well as in cooperation with
private sector efforts in this country and around the world. The
International Year will give our country the opportunity to recognize the
talents and capabilities of our fellow citizens with disabilities. We can
also share our rehabilitation and treatment skills with other countries and
learn from them as well. I am proud that the United States leads the world
in mainstreaming and treating disabled people. However, we have a long way
to go before all psychological and physical barriers to disabled people are
torn down and they can be full participants in our American way of life. We
must pledge our full commitment to this goal during the International Year.