Portland observer., July 18, 2012, Image 1

‘All Comers’ Track Meet
Cathedral Park Jazz
Albina Roadrunners
pay tribute to late
coach and mentor
Expanded festival to
fill weekend calendar
See Metro, page 9
See story, page 3
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Volume X X X X I
'City o/Roses’
Number 27
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www.p
www.portlandobserver.com
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Wednesday • July 18. 2012
M f t i j f L3
l I l 3
Established in 1970
Tired
of B eing
Invisible
Advocate works
for disabled rights
by M indy C ooper
T he P ortland O bserver
ickole Cheron never thought she would dedicate her
life as an advocate for those living with a disability,
but after experiencing first-hand the challenges
faced as a person who uses a wheelchair, she said it was time
to give back to her own community.
Although Portland has made great strides to enable equal
access and rights for those living with a disability, Cheron,
the city’s disability program coordinator, said even with the
Americans with Disabilities Act, there is a long way to go for
justice.
Enacted by Congress in 1990, the ADA established a clear
and comprehensive prohibition of discrimination on the
basis of disability and gives civil rights protections, similar
to those on the basis of race, color, sex, national origin, age,
and religion.
Not only is July Americans with Disabilities Act aware­
ness month, but this week also marks the 22nd anniversary
of when the ADA was signed into law by President George
H. W. Bush.
Although the impact of the ADA is undeniable, Cheron
said government made it a complaint-driven law, which
means there is nobody who enforces it other than the federal
government.
“So if you are a person with a disability and you are trying
to go into a restaurant and you have a service animal and the
restaurant says, ‘No I’m not going to serve you’, You have
no one to call,” she said. “You can’t call the police. Even the
city doesn’t enforce the ADA. The city complies with it, but
they are not enforcers of it.”
Cheron sees hope for increased awareness of how people
living with a disability are viewed within the American
culture.
“I think when we look at different people who are
oppressed within our society, people with a disability
tend to be invisible,” she said. “Part o f that is our fear of
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Committed to Cultural Diversity •^community service
Nickole Cheron is an advocate at City Hall for those living with a disability.