About the Author

Joseph P. Shapirois an award-winning journalist who is an NPR news investigations correspondent. Before joining NPR, he spent 19 years atU.S. News & World Reportas a senior writer on social policy, and served as the magazine's Rome bureau chief, White House correspondent, and congressional reporter. For his investigative work, Shapiroreceived a duPont Award, a George Foster Peabody Award, a Robert F. Kennedy Award, and the Edward R. Murrow Award. He is the author ofNo Pity- People with Disabilities Forging a New Civil Rights Movement.

Reviews

“A powerful and engaging book. It’s a must read for anyone who wants to understand the disability rights movement.”—The Disability Rag

“Having spent most of my life with children disabled in one way or another, I know that they become loved and loving adults who are both creative and innovative as they seek to find their deserved place in society. This book will give you understanding instead of the pity you always thought was expected of you.”—C. Everett Koop, M.D., former surgeon general of the United States

“Joseph Shapiro has crafted an interesting book from which everyone can benefit. For those wanting to understand the background against which the Americans with Disabilities Act was framed, this is an excellent primer. At the same time, seasoned veterans of this movement will find within a refreshing review of the personalities and activities of the Disabilities Civil Rights Movement. And for parents seeking a glimpse of possibilities for their child, this book cannot fail to inspire.”—I. King Jordan, president of Gallaudet University
 
“No Pity is first-rate journalism. It will change the way Americans look at people with disabilities. Joe Shapiro’s humane reporting and understanding of the issue could not have come at a more appropriate and important time for the movement. No one who reads his book will fail to be struck by the rightness of this course.”—Senator Tom Harkin

Shapiro, social policies writer for U.S. News & World Report , centers his empathetic review of our society's relations to its disabled population on the 1992 passage of the Americans with Disabilities Act. He documents the political progress of the issue with stories about several of the nation's estimated 35 million disabled people. Included are polio-afflicted activists, Special Olympics competitors, armed services veterans and elderly people who owe their survival to medical and technological advances. While the author cites encouraging signs of progress made in the advance of their rights, he notes that disabled people still struggle to be accepted on equal, independent terms without being patronized, segregated or victimized in an antiquated social services system and a prejudiced society. Author tour. (May)