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Forside / Albummer / Atlanta, Fall 1989 31
Oprettelsesdato / 2013 / Juli / 12
ADAPT (488)
This and ADAPT 509 are continuations of the story on ADAPT 496. The full text of the whole story is on ADAPT 496.
ADAPT (489)
Daily News, Wednesday, September 27, 1989 Handicapped protesters gain support Photo: A man kneels in the middle of a group of three people in wheelchairs, as they talk. Behind him another man stands looking down. One of the three people in wheelchairs, Mike Auberger, with his braids, is seen from the side; another facing the camera has on a hat covering is eyes; and the third has his or her head down reading a paper in their lap. photo by: JOHN BAZEMORE /Daily News Caption: Steven Diaz, chief counsel for the Urban Mass Transportation Administration, meets Tuesday in Atlanta with protesters to discuss their concerns. The Associated Press ATLANTA — Handicapped protesters who occupied a federal building for two days won a pledge of support from the Bush administration Tuesday, but failed to get their main demand — a federal order requiring wheelchair lifts on all new public buses bought with federal funds. The Department of Transportation “cannot issue a summary order commanding immediate access including wheelchair access for all transit,” said Steven Diaz, chief counsel for the Urban Mass Transportation Administration, who met with the protest leaders. “We would if we could." But Diaz said DOT officials and the protesters had agreed on three points: * Transportation Secretary Samuel Skinner will be urged to meet promptly with disabled activists to ensure a “principle of accessibility” until Congress passes the Americans with Disabilities Act. * The protesters will be allowed to continue a “symbolic presence" at the Richard B. Russell building in downtown Atlanta. * Officials will relay to Skinner the protesters’ concern that new rules for handicapped accessibility to air travel are not being drafted quickly enough. "This agreement by no means resolves the problem of access; it just brings us a step closer," said Mark Johnson, 38, of Alpharetta, one of the protest leaders who met with Diaz and other DOT officials. He said he didn't know whether the protesters would leave the building, where they blocked elevators and entrance doors earlier Tuesday. “We may stay here through Thursday, or we may just leave a sticker on the wall. There could be a constant vigil at the building, or we could all leave," he said. The protest by members of ADAPT, or American Disabled for Accessible Public Transportation, began Monday when Skinner was in Atlanta to address the convention of the American Public Transportation Association. At least two dozen protesters chained themselves to doors or blocked exits with their wheelchairs Monday. Authorities attempted to eject several protesters from the building Monday evening, but President Bush intervened and let them spend the night inside rather than send them out into the rain.
ADAPT (490)
Wyoming State Tribune Cheyenne—September 26, 1989 Photo: A group of ADAPT protesters in the lobby of the Richard B. Russell federal building. In the foreground two wheelchair users sit with a visually impaired ADAPT member (Frank Lozano) whose dog guide is by his side. Behind them someone is lying back in their wheelchair, chilling. More protesters in wheelchairs and a couple of people standing form another informal group a little further back in the lobby. The floor is a glossy marble and walls have tile murals. PROTESTERS OF the American Disabled for Accessible Public Transportation, mostly in wheelchairs, settle down for the night in the lobby of the Richard B. Russell federal building in Atlanta, Tuesday. After the group was forced out of the building earlier, President Bush ordered they be allowed to return. (AP)
ADAPT (491)
Photo only. Photo by Tom Olin Picture of the lobby of the Russell federal building filled with ADAPT protesters in wheelchairs and standing. Two sides of the room are floor to ceiling glass windows and doors. People are scattered about in small groups. Outside it is daytime, inside the lights are on.
ADAPT (492)
Atlanta Journal Constitution, Thurs., September 28, 1989 [Headline] Demand by Disabled: 'We Will Ride' (This story is in two parts both of which are included here) Photo: African American police officer with hat perched on his head uses large bolt cutters to cut through a very heavy motorcycle chain that is locked to the neck of an ADAPT protester and the steering wheel of a bus. Behind him is the door of the bus and another officer stands below on the steps. In the foreground is part of a protest sign saying Greyhound. Photo by John Spink, Staff caption reads: Officer C.A. Wardlaw cites a chain holding protester Clayton Jones to a Greyhound bus steering wheel. [Headline] Protesters Arrested After Halting Greyhound Buses. By Pat Burson, Staff Writer More than two dozen disabled activists were arrested Wednesday after they halted bus service at the Greyhound bus station in downtown Atlanta for nearly five hours by blocking driveways with their wheelchairs and, in some cases, chaining themselves to the buses. The demonstrators, who were in town this week to protest the lack of accessible transportation, were driven to jail in a lift-equipped transit bus. Those arrested were charged with criminal trespass, disorderly conduct and failing to clear streets and sidewalks, said Atlanta police Maj. J.L. Mullins. They were released later on their own recognizance. More than 100 disabled protesters wearing headbands and carrying placards began encircling the bus terminal at 3:30 pm. with the majority lined up against the front of the building along International Boulevard. chanting, “We will ride" and “Access is our civil right." Others moved to the back of the terminal and blocked five buses by parking their wheelchairs in front and behind to prevent the drivers from leaving the station. During the protest, police also closed International Boulevard between Spring and Williams streets and rerouted rush-hour traffic. Greyhound officials declined to comment on the protest, which effectively closed the station until 8 p.m. One demonstrator, Clayton Jones, 41, of Houston, pulled himself into the driver‘s seat of an unoccupied bus and chained himself to the steering column. Earlier in the afternoon, he chained himself to the rear wheel of a bus. “I am trying to hold up Greyhound because they are holding up my life," said Mr. Jones, who lost the use of his legs in a 1985 accident. Mr. Jones said he has tried to ride Greyhound alone, but could not because of its “Helping Hands" policy, which requires a passenger in a wheelchair to be carried on and off the buses but allows a companion to travel with the disabled passenger free of charge. The policy also prohibits battery-powered wheelchairs inside the buses. “Is this a free America?" Lillibeth Navarro of Los Angeles shouted at police, draping a full-sized American flag around her body as other protesters were being loaded into the lift-equipped bus. “You are abetting Greyhound’s discriminatory policies!" The bus station was a new target for members of American Disabled for Accessible Public Transportation, or ADAPT, who spent Monday and Tuesday occupying the main floor of the Richard B. Russell Federal Building several blocks to the south. They protested outside the Atlanta Hilton Hotel on Courtland Street on Sunday, where the American Public Transit Association (APTA) is holding its annual convention. Atlanta was chosen as the target for the protests, even though MARTA only buys handicapped-accessible buses, because of the APTA convention here. The Denver-based ADAPT is demanding that all public buses purchased with federal dollars be made handicapped-accessible through installation of wheelchair lifts. The demonstrators targeted Greyhound, one of their major foes in the transportation industry because it does not have lift-equipped buses, will not transport people using electric-powered wheelchairs and requires disabled passengers to travel with their own attendants when they ride on its buses. Tom Street, regional general manager for the bus line, said only four buses carrying a total of 80 passengers left Atlanta during the protest. On a normal evening, 20 buses carrying up to 600 passengers would pass through the terminal. The protest came as a surprise to some who thought victories won by the protesters with federal officials Tuesday would have sent them packing. The protesters met with Steven A Diaz, chief counsel for the Urban Mass Transportation Administration, who told them he would ask Transportation Department officials to meet with them to establish a process to identify public transit authorities that are deliberately speeding up purchase of new buses to circumvent a bill pending in Congress mandating that such buses have wheelchair lifts. Protesters swarmed on the first Greyhound bus that pulled up to the International Boulevard entrance about 4:30 p.m. Three people in wheelchairs and one man who is blind sat in front of the bus, arms linked, while several other protesters went to the side of the bus. One man maneuvered himself out of his wheelchair and onto the steps of the bus while bewildered passengers looked on. One angry passenger screamed obscenities at the protesters as she stepped over the man lying in the doorway. “I just got out of Hardwick prison camp," said the 32 year-old woman, referring to the Georgia Women's Correctional Institution. “We left Hardwick at 8:30 and changed buses three times before we got to Atlanta. I want to go home. “I haven't been home in eight months. I have people waiting at the bus station for me. I said this morning, ‘I‘m free at last,‘ and I come to Atlanta and see this!" Greyhound officials called in police while protest leaders talked by phone to representatives of the bus company at its Dallas headquarters. Most protesters allowed officers to maneuver their wheelchairs over to a lift-equipped bus the police called to the site for the arrests, while others chose to evade police. Staff writer Ben Smith III contributed to this article. Photo (by John Spink/Staff): A group of 4 helmeted police men and a supervisor surround and hold a young African American woman wearing an ADAPT headband. Behind them is the side of an Americruiser over the road coach (bus). In one corner a sign reading "Greyhound is a Dirty Dog" is taped to the bus. Caption: Atlanta police remove protester Anita Cameron of Colorado Springs from Greyhound terminal Wednesday. More than two dozen demonstrators were arrested.
ADAPT (493)
PHOTO only Photo by Tom Olin Four police officers lift Mike Auberger, a quadriplegic, from the baggage compartment of an over-the-road-coach. One officer bends over Mike, the officers's walkie-talkie, handcuffs, and gun on his belt. Another wears a motorcycle helmet. Mike's long braids hang down and his arms, bent over at the elbows, extend out to the sides.
ADAPT (494)
PHOTO only by Tom Olin Paulette Patterson in a manual wheelchair, Anita Cameron and another woman protester sit on the floor mouths open, all chanting in unison. Anita and the other woman wear ADAPT headbands and have their fists raised in the power sign. Behind them George Roberts and Claude Holcomb are in their wheelchairs up against a a glass door that reads "DO NOT ENTER (with and ADAPT sticker over the center)" and "OUT." George is also chanting, Claude looks off to the side.
ADAPT (495)
Thurs., September 28, 1989 Atlanta Journal Photo of Claude Holcomb, a thin man sitting/standing in a motorized wheelchair with a finger raised looking off to the side. On his left thigh is a small wooden letterboard [he uses to communicate]. He sits in front of a Greyhound bus and has an ADAPT flag (a flag that looks like an American Flag except the stars are arranged in the shape of the wheelchair symbol) on a pole tied to his wheelchair. The flag wraps around the bus covering part of the Greyhound dog logo and the name so that only the word hound shows. It appears to be in a bus bay at the terminal. Photo by Andy Sharp/staff caption reads: Claude Holcomb of Hartford, Conn., joins the Greyhound protest with an American flag in tow.
ADAPT (496)
Tues., September 26, 1989 [Headline] Disabled Try to Block Access To Elevators [Subheading] Protesters Continue Russell Building Sit-In By Alma E. Hill and Pat Burson, Staff Writers [This is the full text of the story that appears on ADAPT 496, 509 and 488.] Protesters in wheelchairs moved to block elevators in the Richard B. Russell Federal Building today in their second straight day inside the building, as federal officials increased security. Ed Driver, chief of law enforcement for the General Services Administration, said six security guards were brought in “so that we can maintain access to and from the building." “We're not going to do anything, we just want to be able to maintain an element of safety in the building," Mr. Driver said. At 11:50 a.m., leaders of American Disabled for Accessible Public Transportation (ADAPT) gave the signal and protesters began to chant and roll their wheelchairs in front of the doors on the plaza level of the federal building to restrict access to and from the building, as they had done Monday. Moments later, in an apparent shift in tactics, the group moved toward elevators to cut off access to upper floors in the high-rise. Protesters said they will continue to demonstrate until President George Bush or Transportation Secretary Samuel Skinner complies with their demands to issue a federal mandate requiring new buses purchased with federal dollars to be equipped with wheelchair lifts. Judges who work in the federal building avoided problems getting out of the building by leaving before the noon takeover. And the doors to the Peachtree Federal Employees Credit Union, located in the southwest corner of the building, closed as soon as protesters began to shout. Visitors are being directed out of the basement and second floor exits. The Rev. Wade Blank, of Denver, said officials from the Urban Mass Transit Administration came over to the building to meet with pro- Disabled Group Stages Protest For Wheelchair Lifts on Buses from page A1 [starts on 496, continues here 509, ends on 488. Overlap with 509 and 488] ...test organizers. However, the meeting never took place. “They got on the elevator and didn't tell us what floor they were going to. so we said, ‘The hell with it."' the Rev. Blank said. The protesters began their demonstration Monday to coincide with an appearance by Mr. Skinner at the American Public Transit Association (APTA) convention at a downtown hotel. After occupying the plaza floor of the federal building for eight hours Monday, more than 100 disabled activists were evicted at the close of the business day, only to be allowed back inside after President Bush personally intervened. “We're here until the order gets signed." Michael W. Auberger, of Denver, one of the co-founders and organizers of ADAPT, said Monday. Mr. Auberger and other demonstrators from throughout the country lined their wheelchairs two and three deep near the doorways to the federal building. located at the corner of Spring Street and Martin Luther King Jr. Drive, trying to stop anyone from leaving or entering. Mr. Auberger, who has been disabled since he suffered a spinal cord injury 17 years ago, and others blocked revolving doors by attaching chains and iron bicycle locks around their necks and locking them to door handles, a tactic used to prevent security from simply lifting protesters out of their wheelchairs to clear the doorways. At one point Monday afternoon Mr. Auberger, 35, said, “They'll have to carry everybody out or arrest them." At 6 p.m. Atlanta police and officers from the General Services Administration, who provide security for the building, ordered the protesters to leave and began carrying them outside. The guards used large bolt cutters to sever the chains holding some demonstrators to the doors. At about 8 p.m., as guards were removing the last of the demonstrators, Gary C. Cason, regional administrator of the General Services Administration, told police and maintenance workers to allow the protesters back into the building. “The decision is to let them stay in the building because of the president's deep commitment to the handicapped and their right to protest." Mr. Cason said. Mr. Cason said Mr. Bush also said he was concerned about the protesters sitting outside in the chilly overnight temperatures and rainy mist. Maintenance crews appeared a half-hour later with blankets. Mr. Cason said the protesters would be restricted to the lobby floor and would have access to the restrooms. Protest organizers credit White House counsel C. Boyden Gray for Mr. Bush's action. Mr. Auberger said they contacted Mr. Gray, who took their case to Mr. Bush. The president then called the head of the GSA, Richard G. Austin in Washington, telling him to allow the demonstrators back inside. The protest forced most visitors to the building Monday to use a basement entrance adjacent to an underground parking lot. Mr. Auberger said the group planned to stay in the building overnight and would block the entrances again at noon if the Transportation Department does not order changes in transit-access rules. “At noon the administration has to decide whether or not they are going to arrest us, or we’re closing the building down again,” he said shortly before 11 p.m., as the protesters ate Chinese food they had ordered and made themselves comfortable in the hallway on the Spring Street side of the building. The demonstration was the second in as many days held by ADAPT, a nationwide organization. The event was held in Atlanta to coincide with the annual conference of the American Public Transit Association (APTA), meeting this week in Atlanta, and to attract the attention of U.S. Transportation Secretary Samuel K. Skinner, who spoke to APTA Monday morning. APTA opposes legislation pending in Congress — that ADAPT supports — called the Americans With Disabilities Act. The proposal would remove barriers in public transportation by requiring public transit authorities to have wheelchair lifts on any new buses purchased 30 days after the measure was enacted. APTA officials say they oppose that portion of the measure because it would cut into limited federal funds. While Mr. Skinner has said he supports the bill, ADAPT wants him to issue an executive order so the stipulation can take effect immediately — prior to congressional action. Protesters demanded to talk with Mr. Skinner while he was in Atlanta, but Mr. Skinner departed for St. Croix without meeting with them. Robert Marx, a spokesman for Mr. Skinner, said the secretary does not have the authority to issue such an order, only the president. Spokesmen for ADAPT believe Mr. Skinner is not championing their cause because of a lawsuit the group won against the Chicago Transit Authority (CTA) two years ago, when Mr. Skinner was chairman of the city's Regional Transportation Authority. The court ruling required the CTA to purchase wheelchair lifts when ordering new buses. Photo: Looking down the long narrow glass walled lobby. In the foreground a man is lying bundled in a blanket on the floor. Beside him his motorized wheelchair sits empty. A little further back in the lobby several people sit in their wheelchairs and scooters by a cardboard box and some bags and papers. photo by ANDY SHARP caption: Woody Osburn of Tulsa, sleeping, and others, seen early today in the Russell Building.
ADAPT (497)
This is a continuation of the story on ADAPT 498. The full text appears on 498.
ADAPT (498)
The Atlanta Constitution For 121 Years the South's Standard Newspaper TUESDAY, SEPTEMBER 26, 1989 SPORTS FINAL Photo: A tall man holding a toddler in one arm stepping over and between two motorized wheelchairs blocking the passage. One woman [Christine Coughlin] in a red jacket and headband faces the camera, while the other wheelchair user, in a blue jacket and hood, faces away. Photo by DIANNE LAAKSO/Staff Caption: A man steps over protesters in wheelchairs blocking the doors of the Richard B. Russell Federal Building on Monday. Bush Order Lets Disabled Resume Courthouse Sit-In Protesters Demanding Access To U.S.-Funded Transit Systems By Pat Burson and Alma E. Hill, Staff Writers After occupying the plaza floor of the Richard B. Russell Federal Building for eight hours Monday, more than 100 disabled activists were evicted at the close of the business day. only to be allowed back inside alter President Bush personally intervened. Boxed quote on the side: "The decision is to let them stay in the building because of the president's deep commitment to the handicapped and their right to protest" -- Gary Cason, GSA Main story: The protesters, who formed a human blockade near the main entrances to the 26-story tower about 10 a.m. Monday, vowed to remain until federal regulators require wheelchair lifts on all buses purchased with federal dollars. “We're here until the order gets signed," said Michael W Auberger of Denver, one of the co-founders and organizers for American Disabled for Accessible Public Transportation (ADAPT). Mr. Auberger and other demonstrators from throughout the country lined their wheelchairs two and three deep near the doorways to the federal building, located at the corner of Spring Street and Martin Luther King Jr. Drive, trying to stop anyone from leaving or entering. Mr. Auberger, who has been disabled since he suffered a spinal cord injury 17 years ago, and others blocked revolving doors by attaching chains and iron bicycle locks around their necks and locking them to door handles. a tactic used to prevent security from simply lilting protesters out of their wheelchairs to clear the doorways. At one point Monday afternoon, Mr. Auberger, 35. said, “They‘ll have to carry everybody out or arrest them." At 6 p.m., Atlanta police and officers from the General Services Administration, who provide security for the building, ordered the protesters to leave and began carrying them outside. The guards used large bolt cutters to sever the chains holding some demonstrators to the doors. At about 8 p.m., as guards were removing the last of the demonstrators, Gary C. Cason, regional administrator of the General Services Administration, told police and maintenance workers to allow the protesters back into the building. “The decision is to let them stay in the building because of the president's deep commitment to the handicapped and their right to protest," Mr. Cason said. Mr. Cason said Mr. Bush also said he was concerned about the protesters sitting outside in the chilly overnight temperatures and rainy mist. Maintenance crews appeared a half-hour later with blankets. and cots were promised. Mr. Cason said the protesters would be restricted to the lobby floor and would have access to the restrooms. Protest organizers credit White House counsel C. Boyden Gray for Mr. Bush's action. Mr. Auberger said they contacted Mr. Gray, who took their case to Mr. Bush. The president then called the head of the GSA, Richard G. Austin, in Washington, telling him to allow the demonstrators back inside. Mr. Auberger said the group planned to stay in the building overnight and would block the entrances again at noon if the Transportation Department does not order changes in transit-access rules. “At noon the administration has to decide whether or not they are going to arrest us, or we're closing the building do\vn again," he said shortly before 11 p.m., as the protesters ate Chinese food they had ordered and made themselves comfortable in the hallway on the Spring Street side of the building. The protest forced most visitors to the building Monday to use a basement entrance adjacent to an underground parking lot. The demonstration was the second in as many days held by ADAPT, a nationwide organization. The event was held in Atlanta to coincide with the annual conference of the American Public Transit Association (APTA), meeting this week in Atlanta, and to attract the attention of U.S. Transportation Secretary Samuel K. Skinner, who spoke to APTA Monday morning. APTA opposes legislation pending in Congress — that ADAPT supports — called the Americans With Disabilities Act. The proposal would remove barriers in public transportation by requiring public transit authorities to have wheelchair lifts on any new buses purchased 30 days after the measure was enacted. APTA officials say they oppose that portion of the measure because it would cut into limited federal funds. While Mr. Skinner has said he supports the bill, ADAPT wants him to issue an executive order so the stipulation can take effect immediately prior to congressional action. Protesters demanded to talk with Mr. Skinner while he was in Atlanta, but Mr. Skinner departed for St. Croix without meeting with them. Robert Marx. a spokesman for Mr. Skinner, said the secretary does not have the authority to issue such an order, only the president. [This is a combination the story on ADAPT 498 and 497]
ADAPT (499)
[Headline] Handicapped Demonstrators Block Building [Subheading] Dozens Of Disabled Protest Poor Transportation Access Alma Hill and Sandra McIntosh, Staff Writers 9-25-89 PHOTO (by Dianne Laakso/Staff): Paulette Patterson, lying in her manual wheelchair in a red top, yells and holds a power fist in the air while 4 police men push her down the street. The group is isolated alone in the middle of the empty street. Wooden red and white police barricades line the street on the left side and along the bottom of the picture, and behind them a mass of ADAPT protesters look on. Caption: A protester in a wheelchair is moved back behind a barricade Sunday at the Atlanta Hilton Hotel, where the the American Public Transit Association was meeting. About 100 demonstrators called for more accessible public transportation. **************** Dozens of disabled people blocked access to the Richard B. Russell Federal Building today by parking their wheelchairs in front of revolving doorways to protest the lack of handicapped accessibility on public transportation. The protesters converged on the federal building to demand that Secretary of Transportation Samuel Skinner sign an executive order requiring any bus purchased with federal dollars to have wheelchair lifts. They also want the Air Carrier Accessibility Act of 1986 implemented. The act requires equal access in airports for disabled people. The protest coincided with Mr. Skinner's appearance in Atlanta as part of the American Public Transportation Association's (APTA) convention. The association has said local governments should be given the option of purchasing wheelchair lifts on buses, but the demonstrators want them mandated by federal law. “We're here and we aren’t going to leave until Sam Skinner signs the executive order," said\.Diane Coleman of Nashville. Ms. Coleman. who has been using a wheelchair since she was 11, said her disability is not the problem. “The problem . .. is discrimination,“ she said. “And behind that, the barrier is attitudes. We've been discriminated against for too long. and we‘re not going to sit for it any longer." The demonstrators forced scores of employees and people doing business at the federal building to exit from the basement. if they wanted to leave. All main level entrances to the building were blocked. After some people stepped over wheelchairs to get out, protesters lined their wheelchairs two and three deep to prevent people from walking over them. But some onlookers sympathized with the protesters. “I think these people have every right in the world to be concerned about their ability to gain access to public facilities. If it means I am temporarily inconvenienced, that's OK with me," said Edward Katze, a lawyer. The demonstrators vowed to hold their positions until Mr. Skinner comes to the federal building and suffered a spinal cord injury 17 years ago, and others blocked revolving doors by attaching chains and iron bicycle locks around their necks and locking them to door handles. a tactic used to prevent security from simply lilting protesters out of their wheelchairs to clear the doorways. At one point Monday afternoon, Mr. Auberger, 35, said, “They‘ll have to carry everybody out or arrest them." At 6 p.m., Atlanta police and officers from the General Services Administration, who provide security for the building, ordered the protesters to leave and began carrying them outside. The guards used large bolt cutters to sever the chains holding some demonstrators to the doors. At about 8 p.m., as guards were removing the last of the demonstrators, Gary C. Cason, regional administrator of the General Services Administration, told police and maintenance workers to allow the protesters back into the building. “The decision is to let them stay in the building because of the president's deep commitment to the handicapped and their right to protest," Mr. Cason said. Mr. Cason said Mr. Bush also said he was concerned about the protesters sitting outside in the chilly overnight temperatures and rainy mist. Maintenance crews appeared a half-hour later with blankets. and cots were promised. Mr. Cason said the protesters would be restricted to the lobby floor and would have access to the restrooms. Protest organizers credit White House counsel C. Boyden Gray for Mr. Bush's action. Mr. Auberger said they contacted Mr. Gray, who took their case to Mr. Bush. The president then called the head of the GSA, Richard G. Austin, in Washington, telling him to allow the demonstrators back inside. Mr. Auberger said the group planned to stay in the building overnight and would block the entrances again at noon if the Transportation Department does not order changes in transit-access rules. “At noon the administration has to decide whether or not they are going to arrest us, or we're closing the building do\vn again," he said shortly before 11 p.m., as the protesters ate Chinese food they had ordered and made themselves comfortable in the hallway on the Spring Street side of the building. The protest forced most visitors to the building Monday to use a basement entrance adjacent to an underground parking lot. The demonstration was the second in as many days held by ADAPT, a nationwide organization. The event was held in Atlanta to coincide with the annual conference of the American Public Transit Association (APTA), meeting this week in Atlanta, and to attract the attention of U.S. Transportation Secretary Samuel K. Skinner, who spoke to APTA Monday morning. APTA opposes legislation pending in Congress — that ADAPT supports — called the Americans With Disabilities Act. The proposal would remove barriers in public transportation by requiring public transit authorities to have wheelchair lifts on any new buses purchased 30 days after the measure was enacted. APTA officials say they oppose that portion of the measure because it would cut into limited federal funds. While Mr. Skinner has said he supports the bill, ADAPT wants him to issue an executive order so the stipulation can take effect immediately prior to congressional action. Protesters demanded to talk with Mr. Skinner while he was in Atlanta, but Mr. Skinner departed for St. Croix without meeting with them. Robert Marx. a spokesman for Mr. Skinner, said the secretary does not have the authority to issue such an order, only the president.
ADAPT (500)
ON THE MOVE [Headline] Disabled Win Partial Victory in Sit-In Over Bus Access By Alma E. Hill Staff Writer The second day of protests by disabled persons — who blocked the main entrances and elevators of the Richard B. Russell Federal Building — ended Tuesday afternoon when an agreement was reached between officials of the Urban Mass Transportation Administration (UMTA) and leaders of the demonstration. American Disabled for Accessible Public Transportation (ADAPT) protested a lack of access for the handicapped to public buses and demanded an immediate order from the federal government that all new buses be equipped with wheelchair lifts. In an impromptu meeting on the front steps of the building with protest leaders, Steven A Diaz, chief counsel for UMTA, said it was not within U.S. Transportation Secretary Samuel K. Skinner's authority to issue such an order. However, he agreed to ask Transportation Department officials to meet with the protesters to establish a process to identify public transit authorities that are deliberately speeding up purchase of new buses to circumvent a bill pending in Congress mandating that such buses have wheelchair lifts. The Americans With Disabilities Act would require new buses purchased with federal dollars to be equipped with lifts. The equipment would add about $12,000 to $15,000 to the cost of a new bus and an additional $2,000 per year to maintain, according to John A Cline, associate administrator of UMTA. Without the lift, a bus costs about $155,000. UMTA also agreed to relay to Mr. Skinner ADAPT‘s concerns about the slow implementation of the Air Carriers Access Act of 1986, which stipulates that airports be accessible to the handicapped. The agreement fell short of demands protesters had made at the start of the demonstration, but ADAPT leaders said ... DISABLED Continued on B5 [we do not have second part of this article] PHOTO 1 (by Andy Sharp/Staff): A wiry grey haired man in an ADAPT T-shirt, raises himself in his motorized wheelchair, using his arms and legs to push out of the seat, mouth open yelling. Behind him a young woman with an ADAPT headband around her forehead looks at him and yells. Someone's hand is grabbing the armrest of his wheelchair. The two are trying to hold an elevator door open to block the elevator. Behind them a policeman in a hat with a tattoo on his arm tries to push them out and close the door. Caption: Police try to stop Arthur Campbell of Louisville, Ky., from blocking an elevator in the Federal Building Tuesday; at right is protester Rhonda Lester. PHOTO 2 (by Marvin Hill, JR/Staff): A woman, yelling, presses her motorized wheelchair up by the glass doors. There is a "Do Not Enter" sticker above her head. Beside her a man sits in his wheelchair with his back to the door, blocking it. Behind them several other protesters are visible through the reflections on the glass of the door. PHOTO 3 (by Andy Sharp/Staff): A disabled man lies on the floor on his side by a wheelchair while another young man with a backpack stands beside him holding a sports chair over his head as if ready to carry it over the man on the ground. Behind them a man stands on one side and on another a woman stands with her arms akimbo as if trying to balance. A small crowd is visible through the confusion. caption for photos 2 & 3: Christine Coughlin of Phoenix, Ariz. (above) joins in Tuesday's protest; Bob Kafka (right) lies on the floor to help block access to the building's elevator.
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Photo Only (By Tom Olin): (Right to left) Mark McTimus, Barbara Toomer, Mike Auberger, Stephanie Thomas, Frank Lozano and Frazier block the front of a Greyhound bus. Mark is on a tiny yellow scooter holding a yellow sign that says "Lifts Not Lies." Barb is in a manual chair and short sleeved shirt holding a camera; her red sign - taped across her legs -- reads "Go Greyhound And You'll Leave Us Behind! Mike has one long braid and a beard and mustache, his hands are on his hips and like all the others he is chanting; his left leg is elevated in front of him on a padded footrest with no shoe, only a sock (this is to protect an injury he got in the LA County Jail). Stephanie is facing slightly away from the camera with several buttons and stickers on her sports wheelchair and overalls. She is wearing blue-rimmed mirror sunglasses and her sign, also taped over her legs, reads "ALL Aboard." To her left Frank stands wearing his backpack and an ADAPT headband. He and Frazier, his white lab dog guide who sits in front of him, have the same noble expression on their faces. Frank's sign which he holds in one hand, reads "We Will Ride."
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THIS IS A CONTINUATION OF THE ARTICLE IN ADAPT 492. See ADAPT 492 for the complete story.