Resources
Suggested Reading
Brown, Christy. My Left Foot. Mandarin Paperback, 1954.
Callahan, John. Don't Worry, He Won't Get Far On Foot: The Autobiography of a Dangerous Man. William Morrow & Co., 1989.
Callahan, John (irreverent, satirical, "twisted" cartoons):
- Do Not Disturb Any Further. Harper Perennial, 1990.
- Levels of Insanity. Ballantine Books, 2004.
- The Best of Callahan. Ballantine Books, 2008.
Cohen, Darlene. Finding a Joyful Life in the Heart of Pain. Shambala Publications, 2000.
Foster, Rick, and Hicks, Greg. How We Choose to Be Happy. G.P. Putnam's Sons, 1999.
Friedman, Lenore and Moon, Susan, eds. Being Bodies: Buddhist Women on the Paradox of Embodiment. Shambhala Publications, 1997.
Haddon, Mark. The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time. Vintage, 2003.
Heumann, Judith, and Joiner, Kristen. Being Heumann: An Un-repentant Memoir of a Disability Rights Activist. Beacon Press, 2020.
Hockenberry, John. Moving Violations: War Zones, Wheelchairs, and Declarations of Independence. Hyperion, 1995.
Jacobsen, Denise Sherer. The Question of David: A Disabled Mother’s Journey Through Adoption, Family and Life. Creative Arts Book Co., 1999.
Johnson, Harriet McBryde. Too Late to Die Young: Nearly True Tales from a Life. Picador, 2006.
Kron, Audrey. Meeting the Challenge: Living with Chronic Illness. Center for Coping With Chronic Illness, 1996.
LeMaistre, Joanne. After the Diagnosis: From Crisis to Personal Renewal for Patients with Chronic Illness. Ulysses Press, 1995.
Lethem, Jonathan. Motherless Brooklyn. Vintage, 1999.
Mairs, Nancy. Waist-High in the World: A Life Among the Nondisabled. Beacon Press, 1996.
Olkin, Rhoda. What Psychotherapists Should Know About Disability. The Guilford Press, 1999.
Pitzele, Sefra. We Are Not Alone: Learning to Live with Chronic Illness. Workman Publishing, 1996.
Taylor, Stacy (with Epstein, Robert). Living Well with a Hidden Disability. New Harbinger Publications, 1999.
Williams, Donna. Nobody Nowhere: The Extraordinary Autobiography of an Autistic Girl. Avon, 1992.
Wong, Alice (ed.). Disability Visibility: First-Person Stories from the Twenty-First Century. Vintage Books, 2020.
Suggested Viewing
Crip Camp: A Disability Revolution (2020)
Don't Worry, He Won't Get Far on Foot (2018)
The Rider (2018)
The Theory of Everything (2014)
The Intouchables (2011)
Temple Grandin (2010)
The Diving Bell and the Butterfly (2007)
A Beautiful Mind (2001)
I Am Sam (2001)
My Left Foot (1989)
Click on any listing to go directly to the website.
Current Adaptive Technology
Kinova Robotics offers three products designed to address upper-limb mobility limitations. One is a robotic arm that attaches to a power wheelchair and is operated through the chair’s existing controller. The other two devices relieve a wheelchair user’s arm weight to an adjustable degree to provide greater freedom of movement.
San Francisco Bay Area Organizations
Bay Area Outreach and Recreation Program (BORP)
Seeks to improve the health, empowerment and social integration of physically disabled people of all ages through participation in recreational, fitness, and sports activities by providing accessible sports and recreation for children and adults in the greater San Francisco Bay Area.
Center for Accessible Technology
Ensures that people with disabilities benefit from computer-based assistive technology in order to achieve greater independence, gain access to employment and significantly enhance the quality of their life.
The world’s first organization run by and for people with disabilities, the Center for Independent Living was founded in 1972 to support disabled people in their efforts toward independence.
Prepares people with disabilities for professional employment by providing technical training, coaching and associated services.
Disability Rights Education and Defense Fund (DREDF)
DREDF is a national civil rights law and policy center that seeks to advance the civil and human rights of people with disabilities through legal advocacy, training, education, and public policy and legislative development.
Through the Looking Glass is a pioneer in doing research and providing training and services for families in which a child, parent or grandparent has a disability or medical issue.
Works in communities and nations worldwide to eliminate barriers to full social integration and to increase employment, economic security and health care for persons with disabilities.
California and National Groups
Offers information, guidance, and training on the Americans with Disabilities Act.
State of California Department of Rehabilitation
The California State Law definition of disability, found in the Fair Employment and Housing Act, is broader under most State laws than the federal definition.
U.S. Department of Justice/Civil Rights Division
Website provides information and technical assistance on the Americans with Disabilities Act.
Comprehensive website explains provisions of the Americans with Disabilities Act and gives links to all federal agencies involved in overseeing its enforcement.