By Tamar Davis, CEO
As we approach the end of the month, I’ve found myself thinking about the anniversary of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), which was signed into law on July 26, 1990. The ADA was a landmark civil rights achievement, and yet, 35 years later, bias and prejudice still exist in ways that are both shocking and disheartening. I wanted to share three articles I’ve read this summer that prompted reflection for me:
I hope you’ll take a moment to read one or more of these articles—I’d love to hear your reflections. And if other pieces you’ve been reading have sparked thoughts about disability inclusion, accessibility, or belonging, I’d be grateful if you’d share them with me.
Denied a Heart, Now an Advocate: Charlotte Woodward’s Fight for Equal Access
My not-so-secret guilty pleasure is reading People magazine. I came across this powerful piece, which tells the story of Charlotte Woodward, a woman with Down syndrome who, after being denied a heart transplant, has become a leading advocate for organ transplant equity. Her courageous activism is inspiring—and a stark reminder of how far we still have to go to dismantle disability discrimination in medicine.
What Your Jewish Employees Need Right Now
This article discusses the refusal of some corporations to allow Jewish Employee Resource Groups (company-supported affinity groups), and it personally resonated with me. When navigating certain spaces, I often find myself feeling a need to downplay or selectively share parts of my Jewish identity in addition to my disability. It was upsetting to learn that the article itself was rejected by several mainstream publications before being published by Psychology Today, underscoring how uncomfortable it can be to call out antisemitism even in seemingly safe spaces.
Time for Synagogues to Join the Accessibility Map
This piece hit close to home for me. It’s a call for synagogues to critically examine and improve their accessibility. It made me both consider the ways that my own shul community can do more to be truly accessible to all who wish to belong and recommit myself to this goal.
About the Author
Tamar Davis
As a person born with a disability and parent of a child with a disability, Tamar is keenly aware of the ongoing need for advocacy and accessibility for disability inclusion and education for children and families in the global Jewish community. In August 2020, Tamar became CEO of Gateways: Access to Jewish Education, after having served as the Chief Development Officer for the Jewish Community Relations Council (JCRC) of Greater Boston. Before that, Tamar had worked for over a decade at Hadassah, The Women’s Zionist Organization of America and Hadassah International, most recently as Hadassah’s National Director of Annual Giving. Tamar is an active volunteer in the Greater Boston Jewish community, having previously served as a member of Gateways’ Board of Trustees and as Board Chair of Young Israel of Brookline. When she lived in Manhattan, Tamar was a Vice President of Congregation Ohab Zedek, a member of JNFuture’s Leadership Ring, and co-founded ViZion, a growing network of professionals working for Jewish, Israel and Zionist-related non-profits (now managed by the American Zionist Movement). Tamar has a Bachelor of Science in marketing from Yeshiva University’s Syms School of Business. A proud stepmother and mother to five children, Tamar lives with her husband, Allan Galper, in Brookline, MA.