friday, September 25, 1981
daily nebraskan
page 7
Handicapped bias improved
yet needs exist professor
By Laura Garrison
The same social construction that caus
es racism and sexism causes discrimination
of the handicapped, a crusader for the
handicapped and co-author of The Unex
pected Minority: Handicapped Children in
America said Thursday.
"The roots of discrimination are not
found in biology," sadi William Roth. "It's
a part of society."
Roth, who is disabled, addressed a
workshop sponsored by the Lincoln-Lancaster
County Child Guidance Center.
He said society is capable of reconciling
the social problem of the handicapped and
the last 10 years have brought acceptance
of the handicapped as a result of an intense
effort by society as a whole.
Roth is an associate professor in the
School of Social Welfare at the State Uni
versity of New York at Albany. He receiv
ed a PhD in political science from the Uni
versity of Califronai of Berkeley and he re
cently published The Handicapped Speak.
"Things are changing for the handicap
ped," Roth said. "This is made visible to
the public by action groups and the media.
It's not unusual to see ramps and curb cuts
in buildings anymore," he said.
Roth said the best way for a handicap
ped, child to grow up "as a child should," is
to provide a normal childhood. One of the
worst disservices a teacher or parent of a
handicapped child can do is not listen.
"Many handicapped children are not
kids first," he said. "They are patients.
How do we expect a child who does not
live like a child to grow like a child?"
He said it is remarkable that disabled
children grow up at all considering the
amount of resistance they encounter in
school and in social situations.
Teachers and parents need to develop a
way of listening that allows them to hear,
he said.
"Children are very honest in telling pro
fessionals what they need," he said.
"Adults just aren't very good at listening."
The goal of special education should be
to make the disabled child a "connoisseru
of life". The strong parts of the child
should be expanded, he said.
Future federal cutbacks should not hin
der the disabled in their fight to gain rights,
Roth said.
Some people have a hard time thinking
of the disabled as a minority," Roth said.
"But the fact is we suffer from underem
ployment and segregation. The handicap
ped are denied the self-evident right of
humanity."
Federal cutbacks don't make sense mor
ally and hurt the future promise for rights
of the handicapped, he said.
Dances highlight of jubilee
The second annual Wild West A Days
will be from 7 p jn. to midnight Friday and
11 a.m. to midnight Saturday, said
Michelle Heitmann, publicity coordinator
for the Willard Community Center.
The celebration will be at 501 West A
St. in the Village Square Shopping Center
parking lot.
A scavenger hunt and a teen dance spon
sored by KFRX radio will highlight Friday
night, Heitmann said.
Saturday events include: tug-of-war, an
egg toss, a frog jumping contest, a turtle
race, a horseshoe pitching contest and sack
races. There also will be a barbeque, a beer
garden, a flea market, a free country-western
dance with George Amen and White
Lightning and rides, Heitmann said.
Proceeds will go to the Willard Com
munity Center, Heitmann said. The center
is a renovated school which houses child
care and senior citizen programs, Heitmann
said. It also is a meeting spot for neighbor
hood organizations such as Boy Scouts and
4-H groups, Heitmann said.
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