Sunday, August 21, 2011

Fred Fay, pioneering advocate for disability rights, dies; documentary about his life set for release in October

Wikipedia: "Fred Fay (September 12, 1944 - August 20, 2011) was an early leader in the disability rights movement in the United States. He won the 1997 Henry B. Betts Award for outstanding achievement in civil rights for Americans with disabilities."

From the producers of Lives Worth Living, which is set to air on PBS Oct 27. More information about Fay can be found on wikipedia.

“Lives Worth Living” is both an historical documentary about the Disability Rights Movement and a biography about one man’s struggle to survive.

This hour-long program targets a national audience of 54,000,000 people with disabilities, students at all levels, and eventually, with global outreach, more than 650,000,000 worldwide.

Fred Fay (pictured), a charismatic leader of the movement, narrates the story of a long, hard, and successful drive for civil rights – a drive that brought together a once fragmented population into a powerful coalition that created some of the most far reaching civil rights legislation in our nation’s history.

The program’s content is essential, compelling, and relevant for everyone given that anyone at any time can become a member of the disabled community.

People with disabilities are one of the largest of any minority within our nation, and this program will be the first television history on the subject. It is a window into a world inhabited by people with an unwavering determination to live their lives like anyone else, and a passage into the past where millions of people lived without access to schools, apartment buildings, public transportation, etc. – a status quo today’s generation cannot imagine.

The essential message of this program is about the power of humanity and self-determination, and what one can accomplish against seemingly insurmountable obstacles.