Without crippling institutions
No otherwise qualified handicapped individual in the United States ... shall, solely by reason of his handicap, be excluded from participation in, be denied the benefits of, or be subjected to discrimination under any program or activity receiving Federal financial assistance.
Translated, that key passage of the 1973 Rehabilitation Act means that eventually city halls, courthouses, museums, subways, libraries, schools, universities and many other institutions that rely even partly on funding from Washington must be accessible to people with physical disabilities, particularly those in wheelchairs. Ramps must be built and elevators provided; doorways must be widened to at least 32...
