Disability Civil Rights and a New Paradigm for the Twenty-First Century: The Expansion of Civil Rights Beyond Race, Gender and Age

Abstract

The modern workplace is becoming diverse in ways that are no longer captured by exclusive categories of race, gender, and age. Class and economic differences, sexual orientation, multiple careers, and individuals with disabilities are all a part of a workforce that is changing the American employment landscape in non-traditional ways. For many people in the workforce, being treated equally does not always achieve a workplace free of discrimination, nor accomplish the broad goals of civil rights. The lack of homogeneity among people with disabilities requires an individual and contextual analysis under the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), as well as a flexible, interactive process between the employer and the employee to provide a reasonable accommodation. Miller argues that this disability rights paradigm - one that necessitates an individualized, case-by-case analysis of discrimination - better reflects the diversity and needs of the complex, modern workforce.