Demonstrations over disability civil rights erupted across the nation in
April of 1977. 

Photo of protesters in front of the San Francisco Health Education and
Welfare offices cropped to show one protesters  holding up a sign with
504 Human Rights for All hand painted on it.

 <http://www.npr.org/ramfiles/wesun/20020428.wesun.cut1.ram> 

Listen to a news report describing the first day of the San Francisco
demonstration.

April 28th, 1977:
On April 28, nearly four weeks into the sit-in, HEW Secretary Joseph
Califano endorsed the regulations. The protesters had won after
history's longest occupation of a US federal building. 

 "The San Francisco 504 sit-in
<http://www.npr.org/programs/wesun/features/2002/504/>  did not succeed
because of a brilliant strategy by a few disability leaders. It
succeeded because the Deaf people set up a communication system from the
4th floor windows inside the building to the plaza down below; because
the Black Panther Party brought a hot dinner to all 150 participants
every single night; because people from community organizing backgrounds
taught us how to make collaborative decisions; because friends came and
washed our hair in the janitor's closet sink."   Corbett Joan O'Toole
reflects. The Ragged Edge
<http://www.raggededgemagazine.com/departments/reflections/000499.html> 

April 5th, 1977: 
Despite persistent efforts of disability rights advocates regulations
enforcing Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 had not yet been
signed.  Lawmakers and administration officials did not want to spend
the money it would take to provide disability access to all
federally-funded programs Disability rights activists in 10 cities
demonstrate and occupy the offices of the Department of Health Education
and Welfare (HEW) to force issuance of regulations implementing Section
504 of the Rehabilitation Act. In most cities the activists made their
point and went home at the end of the day.   In San Francisco
approximately 150 protesters occupied the building 



Poor quality Black & white photo of Nixon his desk signing the Rehab Act
with a small audience
September 26th, 1973: 
After two vetoes over funding issues, the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 was
signed into law by Richard Nixon.  It included Section 504 prohibiting
discrimination on the basis of disability in programs conducted by
federal agencies, in federal employment and the employment practices of
federal contractors. Most importantly, Section 504 forbids
discrimination against people with disabilities in any activity or
program that receives federal financial assistance. 

 Richard Nixon's Statement on Signing the Rehabilitation Act of 1973.
<http://www.presidency.ucsb.edu/ws/index.php?pid=3979>