HUHC UNDERGRADUATE RESEARCH SPRING 2021
AMANDA LEPURAGE
History of Disability Rights and Activism at Hofstra Methods of Research
PUSH
Paul Hearne
Takeaways
The Chronicle
• People United in Support of the Handicapped (student organization founded in 1970) • Rallied for a more accessible campus • Fostered disability pride and community • Lobbied for the passing of Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act
• Worked through student government to make Hofstra more accessible • Worked his way up student government became president • Graduated from Hofstra University as an undergraduate and law student. • After graduating law school, he worked to provide legal aid for those with disabilities. • He ran the Dole Foundation for Employment of People with Disabilities and was director of multiple foundations
• People are not fire hazards and should not be treated as less than due to their disability • Not being allowed in the dorms due to being deemed a fire hazard is not acceptable and is a clear form of discrimination • Just because new legislations have been passed, some things are yet to change • People are not fire hazards, and all humans deserve equity and equality
Local Newspapers Hofstra Yearbooks Interviews Film Literature
¡ The Chronicle
METHODS OF RESEARCH
¡ Local Newspapers ¡ Hofstra Yearbooks ¡ Interviews ¡ Film ¡ Literature
THE CHRONICLE, OTHER NEWSPAPERS AND YEARBOOKS
¡ Contained information on PUSH, PHED,
The Rolling Dutchmen, and all its members
¡ Pieces in The Chronicle written by Janice
Daar and Carolyn Sofia had a tendency to highlight PUSH
¡ Yearbooks showed pictures of PUSH and
the Rolling Dutchmen and its members
¡ Yearbooks taught us the origin of when
PUSH became recognized as an organization
¡ Local papers like Newsday contained
information on PUSH members and Hofstra
¡ Dr. Rustici, myself, and other students
interviewed former PUSH members, other Hofstra alumni, and people who worked with these alumni later in life
INTERVIEWS
¡ Interviews taught me more than I could
learn in any newspaper because these were firsthand accounts of peoples lived experiences ¡ From PUSH members like Mark
Drummer to James Weisman, lifelong friend of PUSH member Paul Hearne
¡ Hofstra’s film “All Things on Wheels Aren’t
FILM & LITERATURE
Equal” highlights what was deemed an acceptable accessible campus at the time of it’s release in 1966. ¡ Robert Mauro’s memoir Sucking Air, Doing
Wheelies: Memories of a Fifties Polio Survivor demonstrates the struggles of a disabled student at Hofstra University and his involvement with PUSH.
¡ People United in Support of the Handicapped was an
organization that was formally recognized by Hofstra in 1970. ¡ They rallied for a more accessible campus and a more
PUSH
accessible nation. ¡ Lobbied for the passing of Section 504 of the Rehabilitation
Act. ¡ Fought to allow disabled students in Hofstra’s dorms. ¡ Had monthly meetings in the student center where anyone
was welcome.
Mark Drummer Connie Panzarino NOTABLE PUSH ALUMNI
Ann Cupolo Freeman June Kailes (nee Isaacson) Neil Jacobson
PAUL HEARNE AT HOFSTRA ¡ Worked hard through student government to make
Hofstra more accessible. ¡ Worked his way up student government became
president ¡ Used his role in the student government in order
to accomplish his goals, in contrast with PUSH who used more grassroots efforts. ¡ Not necessarily a member of PUSH but worked
with them and shared common goals. ¡ Graduated from Hofstra University as an
undergraduate and law student.
About the passing of Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act: “It’s a piece of paper. Paper doesn’t change your life.”-Paul Hearne “But this law [the ADA] will not change the heart of the bus driver . . . . of the restaurant owner, of the employer. . . . Here’s to changed hearts.” -Paul Hearne
¡ Worked with James Weisman providing legal aid for those
with disabilities, usually on transportation issues.
PAUL HEARNE AFTER HOFSTRA
¡ Ran the Dole Foundation for Employment of People with
Disabilities. ¡ Was director of the International Center for the Disabled,
the National Results Council, the Very Special Arts International Fund and the Osteogenesis Imperfecta Foundation. ¡ Died in 1998. Has left behind a wonderful legacy and there
are awards in his honor.
OVERALL TAKEAWAYS FROM THIS SEMESTER’S RESEARCH
People are not fire hazards and should not be treated as less than due to their disability. As Mark Drummer stated, he was seen as a fire hazard since he was a child and was not allowed to do things that any other child could do. This continued into his life at Hofstra and the life of other students with disabilities at Hofstra. Connie Panzarino wanted to live in the dorms at Hofstra due to being a fire hazard. Panzarino made a flyer at Hofstra that said “Are you a fire hazard? Hofstra University says that disabled students are fire hazards, if you are concerned about this issue, please come to a meeting…” That is how PUSH began. Not being allowed in the dorms due to being deemed a fire hazard is not acceptable and is a clear form of discrimination. Just because new legislations have been passed, some things are yet to change. People are not fire hazards, and all humans deserve equity and equality.