Striving to remove barriers that prevent us from building Vibrant, Diverse, Inclusive, Accessible Communities!
Be an Upholder and Defender of the Victims of Oppression
Take action to remove barriers that prevent us from building inclusive and just communities. Establish equitable relationships among individuals, communities, and institutions of society that uplift all and reject the idea of "othering." Uphold and defend the rights of those who suffer from oppression and be a beacon of hope and compassion.
Be generous in prosperity, and thankful in adversity.
Be worthy of the trust of thy neighbor, and look upon him with a bright and friendly face.
Be a treasure to the poor, an admonisher to the rich, an answerer of the cry of the needy, a preserver of the sanctity of thy pledge.
Be fair in thy judgment, and guarded in thy speech.
Be unjust to no man, and show all meekness to all men.
Be as a lamp unto them that walk in darkness, a joy to the sorrowful, a sea for the thirsty, a haven for the distressed, an upholder and defender of the victim of oppression.
Let integrity and uprightness distinguish all thine acts.
Be a home for the stranger, a balm to the suffering, a tower of strength for the fugitive.
Be eyes to the blind, and a guiding light unto the feet of the erring.
Be an ornament to the countenance of truth, a crown to the brow of fidelity, a pillar of the temple of righteousness, a breath of life to the body of mankind, an ensign of the hosts of justice, a luminary above the horizon of virtue, a dew to the soil of the human heart, an ark on the ocean of knowledge, a sun in the heaven of bounty, a gem on the diadem of wisdom, a shining light in the firmament of thy generation, a fruit upon the tree of humility.
-Baha’u’llah (Gleanings from the Writings of Baha’u’llah, pp 285)
Examples of People who are Upholders and Defenders of Victims of Oppression:
- Haben Girma, the first Deafblind person to graduate from Harvard Law School and human rights lawyer advancing disability justice.
- Because she made a fuss, Judy Heumann made everyone's life better
- The Colorado Cross-Disability Coalition (CCDC) Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) 2023 Access Awards
- Tanni Grey-Thompson - Tanni's lifetime road to disabled equality
- Louise B. Miller - a remarkable and overlooked chapter in civil rights history unfolds through the tireless advocacy.
- Jack Fisher - The Curb Ramps of Kalamazoo: Discovering Our Unrecorded History
- Ed Roberts, who contracted polio at 14, faced extensive paralysis and required an iron lung to breathe. Despite these challenges, he became the first student with a severe disability to attend UC Berkeley. Roberts and his fellow Berkeley students with disabilities took direct action to address the city's inaccessible sidewalks and street corners. Their efforts involved demolishing curbs and installing makeshift curb cuts at night, all while advocating for federal legislation to eliminate barriers for Americans with disabilities. This grassroots activism ultimately led to the passage of the Architectural Barriers Act in 1968, setting the stage for broader legislation like the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) in 1990, which mandated curb cuts on all U.S. sidewalks, marking a significant triumph for the disability rights movement.
Share or Print with:
