December 4, 2024 • 33 mins
Uncover the transformational journey of Franklin Delano Roosevelt, one of America's most influential leaders, who turned his personal struggles into a powerful force for change in disability advocacy. Kevin and Palmi Henry, your hosts, promise you'll gain an intimate understanding of how FDR's journey from a polio diagnosis to the presidency shaped public perceptions of disability. We explore the intriguing possibility that FDR may have battled Guillain-Barre syndrome, a theory that casts new light on historical narratives, and discuss how the media played a pivotal role in crafting his public image.
But the story doesn't end there. We venture beyond FDR's era to examine the evolution of disability rights, spotlighting the profound impact of laws like the Americans with Disabilities Act and the enduring influence of organizations such as the March of Dimes. We tackle the pressing issues of accessibility in legacy buildings and workplace discrimination, showcasing the resilience and determination of the disability community. Join us as we reflect on the past, celebrate the progress, and contemplate the future of equality and accessibility for all.
1.https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Franklin_D._Roosevelt
2.https://facts.net/franklin-d-roosevelt-facts/
3.https://www.nps.gov/articles/000/prologue.htm
4.https://gov.texas.gov/governor-abbott
5.https://www.britannica.com/biography/Greg-Abbott
6.https://www.ada.gov/
Mark as Played
Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:00):
Welcome to our podcast with Life Gives you
Lungs.
I'm Kevin Henry and my partnerin crime, and life is Pommy
Henry.
I have a rare disease known asspinal cell viral ataxia, which
is a neuromuscular disease.
(00:20):
This has left me with mobilitychallenges, with a speech
impediment and noise-inducedanxiety.
Speaker 2 (00:33):
Living with these disabilities for over 20 years,
we have developed helpful hintsand life lessons that we would
like to share with you.
That has made our life easierand possible in some cases.
We consider ourselvesdisability advocates and intend
to educate ourselves and youabout other disabilities and
(00:55):
issues, and also talk aboutthings we find interesting and
frequently encounter when we'reout and about.
Speaker 1 (01:13):
Hi everybody.
It's Kevin.
I want to remind you that we'restill on break between we're
after season two now, so whatwe're after season 2 now.
So what we're doing isbroadcasting some of our first
season 1 episodes during thatpause before season 3 starts.
(01:37):
This one concerns FDR in season1.
You'll probably notice I'vejust labeled the episodes as
episode one, two and so forth.
This time I'm actually going togive them an episode title I'll
(02:02):
see you next season, bye titleI'll see you next season, bye.
Speaker 2 (02:16):
Well, hello there, you have reached the when Life
Gives you Lemons podcast.
My name is Palmy.
Speaker 1 (02:24):
My name is Kevin.
Speaker 2 (02:27):
Episode two Handicapped is not a new thing,
unless it's happening to you.
So we're going to talk aboutprominent people who have been
noted to be handicapped in thepast, and the first one we're
talking about is FDR Kevin.
Speaker 1 (02:44):
FDR is kind of controversial, so it should be
noted that we're not reallydiscussing politics.
He did bad things and he didgood things.
We're talking about how heovercame his handicap to
(03:05):
accomplish what he did.
Okay, he was born in 1882,passed away while in office 1945
.
He was commonly known as FDR,which stands for Franklin Delano
Roosevelt.
(03:26):
He was actually the cousin toTeddy Roosevelt.
Speaker 2 (03:31):
And he was diagnosed with polio myelothysy and
underwent years of therapy,including hydrotherapy, at the
Warm Springs in Georgia.
Roosevelt remained paralyzedfrom the waist down and relied
on a wheelchair and leg bracesfor mobility, which he took
(03:51):
effects to conceal in public.
Let's hear a little more aboutFDR, kevin.
Do you have some more details?
Speaker 1 (03:59):
Yeah, he pretty much patterned his political career
after that of his cousin, rightdown to running for offices he
had on his way to the presidency.
At one point he was secretaryof the Navy.
(04:22):
Another point he was electedGovernor of New.
Speaker 2 (04:27):
York.
Now that was twice.
He was elected twice for that.
Speaker 1 (04:31):
That was in the 20s and 30s when he moved into
government Governor's Mansion inAlbany.
He had the governor's mansionmade handicapped accessible with
(04:55):
ramps and doorways.
His wheelchair would fitthrough, also an elevator he
also had an elevator.
There was a time he woresteel-like braces and he would
kind of stiff-leggedly approacha podium and then kind of use
that to prop himself up and leanon In the public eye.
(05:18):
He wasn't displaying hisdisability, wasn't displaying
his disability.
He kind of kept that out of thepublic eye, although it was
more or less no one secret tothe media that covered his
career.
They would respect his privacyand to this day there are only
(05:43):
three known photographs of FDRin a wheelchair.
Speaker 2 (05:49):
Show here a quote from journalist John Guthner,
who reported that in the 1930she often met people in Europe,
including world leaders, whowere unaware of Roosevelt's
paralysis.
David Brinkley, who was a youngWhite House reporter in World
War II, stated that the SecretService actively interfered with
(06:09):
photographers who tried to takephotos of Roosevelt in a
wheelchair or being moved byothers.
The Secret Service commonlydestroyed photographs they
caught being taken in thismanner.
However, there are occasionalexceptions, like the three that
you quoted.
This manner.
Speaker 1 (06:25):
however, there are occasional exceptions, like the
three that you quoted.
Mr Hugh Gallagher, a disabilityadvocate, theorized that
Roosevelt was desperate toappear able-bodied.
Back then, if you were notconsidered able-bodied, you
(06:48):
pretty much suffered for it.
Speaker 2 (06:50):
Well, they just thought you weren't able to do
the job that they were electingyou for, so he was desperate for
them to be elected.
Speaker 1 (06:58):
So it was part of his strategy campaign strategy part
of his strategy campaignstrategy and that pretty much
pertained to all of hispolitical offices, not just the
presidency.
As you all know, in the pastit's been the practice that a
(07:19):
politician will work his waythrough several offices before
announcing candidacy for thepresident.
Even though his party knew hewas disabled, he had shown in
the past he's able to do well inpolitics.
Speaker 2 (07:42):
Well, he was thought of as a fighter and, better yet,
as an underdog, and not a manto pity, not a man to envy, but
a man to cheer for.
Speaker 1 (07:53):
The actual diagnosis for him has come into question
in modern times because thepolio related diagnosis that he
had received at the time was,like, very limited in scope,
(08:16):
because polio was a new drug oneverybody's, new disease on
everyone's mind and they justassumed that's what it was.
It was somehow affecting hismobility.
Speaker 2 (08:43):
But what do they think?
It is now Kev.
Speaker 1 (08:45):
In 2003,.
Modern scientists and doctorsput their heads together and
concluded in a study publishedby Armand Goldman.
They used three differentmethods that are part of the
diagnosis process that isundergone now Observation,
(09:16):
basically pattern recognition,reconstructing the effects of
the disease, and one that I'mnot sure of the word how to
pronounce this or what itentails it's Baylesian analysis.
(09:39):
And the conclusion wasGuillain-Barre syndrome, gbs,
was more probable than his polioDiagnosis Diagnosis, in their
opinion.
Now, you have to bear in mindthat they didn't have a patient
to examine.
(10:00):
They're just reading about hislifestyle, reviewing some of the
tests that doctors had donewhen he was alive and possibly
some of the family records aswell.
There's Prangle and DelanoRoosevelt Memorial and as part
(10:26):
of that he's sitting in awheelchair.
He's the only public official Iknow in a wheelchair in a
statue that's in Washington DC,if you care to see it.
The wheelchair statue was notoriginally included in the
(10:48):
memorial.
It was added in January 2001because of the concerns of
disability rights advocates andfundraising by the National
Organization on Disability.
Fundraising by the NationalOrganization on Disability.
Speaker 2 (11:06):
So Franklin D Roosevelt was elected three
times as president of the UnitedStates.
Speaker 1 (11:15):
I believe that was four times.
Speaker 2 (11:17):
Oh, four times you're right.
And he remained the presidentuntil his death.
Speaker 1 (11:21):
Basically he died in office because basically he
worked himself to death.
Doctors kept trying to tell himto take things more easily than
he had been, but with the wargoing on and the rigors of the
(11:45):
job, he just never found theability to do that.
He felt it was his job togovern and he didn't hold back
on that.
Fdr remained the leader ofAmerica until his death in 1945,
(12:06):
when his vice president, harryTruman, was assumed the
presidency upon his demise.
Speaker 2 (12:18):
He did lots of good things for the country was very
strong during the World War II,but there are some actions that
are kind of questionable in hisum history.
Um one was the um removing theum asian people from their homes
(12:38):
and into what are they calledthey called them internment
camps.
Internment camps, yeah, butbasically they are concentration
camps.
Speaker 1 (12:50):
That term was developed in the 1800s.
It is simply depicting a campthat is filled with the
concentration of people that youdesire to be in one place, as
opposed to the wordconcentration camp.
(13:12):
When Nazi Germany was roundingup people, putting them in death
camps, they made theinternational distinction
between concentration camps,which you know.
If you Get down to brass tacks,that could be a prison, it
(13:35):
could be a medical facility, itcould be anywhere.
You're capturing people who areconfined not of their own free
will.
Speaker 2 (13:47):
He also earned a Nobel Peace Prize.
Speaker 1 (13:51):
It was his work selling a war between the
Russians and the Japanese.
Speaker 2 (13:58):
In 1906, that was prior to him being the president
.
Speaker 1 (14:01):
And he was the first American to win a Nobel Prize.
Speaker 2 (14:08):
He was the 32nd president, did four terms, like
you said, died in office, but hemade it very obvious throughout
his whole life to try to appearable-bodied versus handicapped.
But in the long run he did very, quite a few things for the
(14:30):
handicapped to help with, withhandicap being handicapped.
One of the things was heinitiated the ADA.
Speaker 1 (14:42):
The Americans with Disabilities Act.
Speaker 2 (14:46):
And what did that?
Can you explain a little bitabout that, kevin?
Speaker 1 (15:02):
saying that disabled people with impairments have the
right to participate in societyin public without being
discriminated against.
It goes on.
It mentions examples, butthey're not hard and fast
definitions of disabilities, sonone are mentioned, more than
(15:23):
others.
Speaker 2 (15:24):
The main point of it was that in prior, individuals
who had experienceddiscrimination on the base of
being disabled had often had nolegal recourse to aggress any
discretions.
So this allowed it was a law.
It allowed people to have someway to fight against the
(15:49):
discrimination.
Speaker 1 (15:51):
Yeah, just FYI, I did reach out to a lawyer's office
that specializes indisability-related cases.
I'm still waiting to hear backfrom them.
It's been several weeks and Ireally don't think they're going
to contact me.
Speaker 2 (16:13):
There were some interesting things.
When Kevin actually read theentire act, how many pages was
it?
Kev.
Speaker 1 (16:22):
It was actually.
If you go to wwwadaorg, you canread this stuff for yourself,
but I digress here it wasn'tlike pages printed out.
(16:43):
It was a website.
Speaker 2 (16:44):
Oh, okay.
Speaker 1 (16:45):
There were like four or five tabs.
They broke down different areasand such, so I can't really
tell you how many pages it was.
Speaker 2 (16:58):
It was a lot.
Speaker 1 (17:00):
There was a lot of information there, including a
lot of information I hadn'treally considered or expected.
Speaker 2 (17:10):
Can you give us an example?
Speaker 1 (17:12):
Yeah, one of those you're considered disabled under
the ADA if you're a cancersurvivor but you're genetically
predisposed to have cancer, solike if you're genetically
(17:35):
predisposed to have breastcancer and have survived breast
cancer that cancer can't comeback at any time.
So they keep you as a, theydon't keep you there, categorize
you as a disabled personbecause that illness may come
(18:02):
back and you may have the samedisabilities you had before so,
even though you've survived,you're still considered
handicapped Correct and have theADA protection against it.
However, let's be clear aboutthis thing.
(18:23):
There's things that youremployer cannot do.
They cannot hire or fire youbased on your disabled status,
they cannot pay you less thanyour coworkers, et cetera, et
(18:47):
cetera.
Now, aside from handicappedspaces, where they give clear
(19:07):
dimensions and basically saystates will have their own
system for providing permits forthem.
So, for example, my state isgoing to be different than
another state theoretically,than another state theoretically
, but it's up to the state andlocal government to enforce
those laws as if they were theirown state's laws.
Speaker 2 (19:29):
So, basically, there might be some little changes in
between, but the basic thoughtof the law is followed through.
Speaker 1 (19:35):
Well, true, that's also the way innovation comes
around here.
Speaker 2 (19:41):
Yeah.
Speaker 1 (19:55):
If somebody sees a problem in these things either
differently or you know, can Isay better than everybody else,
based on the needs of theircommunity, I will wager.
There are some parts of thecountry Appalachia comes to mind
where they have a lot of coalminers that have spent their
lives under hazardous conditionsand they are limited by
(20:21):
disabilities that we will neversee.
Speaker 2 (20:26):
Being that we work above the ground, they have
things like a black lung.
Speaker 1 (20:32):
They had to overcome A black lung they had to
overcome.
There are other professions aswell that are hazardous that way
, but usually they don't spendall day.
Every day under thoseconditions Makes sense In the
(20:53):
present day.
Coal should be declining as anindustry, so that probably means
there are fewer people miningcoal, so those specific
disabilities may have a lesserimpact on communities in those
(21:15):
areas.
Speaker 2 (21:17):
But then you have others where they go to nuclear
and then you got side effectsfrom that too.
Like you said, it just allowsthe ADA to advance based on what
is the need of the day or theneed of the area based on what
is the need of the day or theneed of the area.
Speaker 1 (21:42):
Yeah, the ADA was constructed as a living document
that can be updated as needed.
Obviously, medical conditionssuch as polio are not as great
of a concern nowadays as theywere in the 30s and 40s, and
even on to the 50s.
Speaker 2 (22:04):
Yeah, I also saw in the research you were doing that
FDR established the March ofDimes, and that is.
I didn't know it, but the dimewas chosen to honor Roosevelt
after his death because of that,because he was associated with
the March of Dimes.
Speaker 1 (22:24):
Yeah, I think that's really a cool idea Because, like
other presidents that have beenon currency, just been
well-known and put on currency,he was put on that dime for a
reason, so I thought that waskind of cool.
Speaker 2 (22:49):
Yeah, and back in his day it was focused on
rehabilitation of the victims ofthe polio.
And nowadays, since that is notan issue that we work with
currently, I'm sure there aresome polio out there, but
because we have the poliovaccine now.
(23:12):
The March of Dimes focuses onpreventing premature births and
congenitive disabilities andinfant mortality.
Speaker 1 (23:18):
One of the things that Roosevelt accomplished is
he opened the door for otherpeople with disabilities.
For example, Governor Abbott ofTexas is in a wheelchair.
He was injured in 1984 as hewas in a campaign for, I believe
(23:46):
, the state attorney general,and it injured his spinal cord,
so basically, he lost mobilityfrom the waist down.
Speaker 2 (24:00):
That was because a tree fell on him right.
Speaker 1 (24:03):
You know, it's a totally different environment
that he's undergone in hispolitical career than FDR did.
Speaker 2 (24:17):
FDR tended to avoid being vulnerable and disabled
because at the time that was theviewpoint of the public
concerning disabled people,whereas today, because of
(24:40):
accomplishments made by people,uh fdr public figures like fdr,
governor abbott is very openabout his disability well, I
know there's also quite a few ummilitary veterans that um have
lost limbs and and stuff likethat that are part of congress
(25:04):
in different states well,actually, um, when they entered
into the longer wars in Iraq andAfghanistan, losing a limb or
having an impairment in a limbwas not automatically
disqualifying you from militaryservice, really disqualifying
(25:26):
you for military service.
Really.
Speaker 1 (25:30):
You would see some people go on in their military
careers, perhaps not in the jobsthey had when they suffered the
injury.
Speaker 2 (25:48):
But they would go on until they retired a normal
career.
That's excellent.
That's a great example of howadvanced the handicap life has
become due to things like theADA and March of Dimes and all
the other things that we'vementioned here.
Speaker 1 (26:06):
Yeah, if you have problems with your job
concerning your disability, youshould contact a lawyer and find
out what your employer may ormay not have done in the terms
of violating your rights grantedto you under the Disability Act
(26:31):
.
You can contact the ADA teamfor help with that.
They can give you some adviceon lawyers to speak to and have
a general understanding to speakto and have a general
(26:56):
understanding of what is notpermissible as far as
disabilities in the workplace.
So bottom line if you thinkyou're being discriminated
against, you have avenues outthere to talk to people and find
out what your situation maylead you towards.
A civil zoo perhaps the ADAoffice itself does not go after
(27:26):
individual employers go afterindividual employers.
but they concentrate on laws ingovernment, making sure that
laws are not singling outdisabled people and trying to
(27:46):
correct those if they are, andtrying to correct those if they
are.
But they do, in fact, work witha team of lawyers who will
(28:08):
refer you to a lawyer that willhelp you with civil matters.
If it's not a law, an unjustlaw, they don't deal with it.
Speaker 2 (28:20):
It's a civil matter and they will try to get you in
contact with the lawyer that canhandle it civilly.
So to conclude here, kevin, itlooks like things have really
advanced in the Department ofHandicapped Accessibility.
I mean, we always have placesto improve, but we definitely
are a lot better off than wewere in FDR's time.
Speaker 1 (28:41):
One thing that we should reexamine I think in the
ADA is there are so manybuildings that are grandfathered
in.
The bottom line is if it's asituation where they don't have
(29:15):
to apply.
This goes for businesses andparticularly I don't want to
single out an industry, but thehotel industry a lot of the
buildings you see, airbnbs orjust older construction that
(29:39):
didn't happen after the ADA, sothey're grandfathered in
automatically and they theyshould reexamine make it perhaps
a little bit more difficult fora public or a agency or a
(30:01):
business to advertise howhandicapped accessible they are
when there is absolutely nothinghandicapped accessible about it
.
Speaker 2 (30:13):
Great and that will lead to more and more
advancements.
But compared to what it was inFDR's time, I'm sure it's a lot
better off than we're a lotbetter off than he was.
Oh, no doubt better off thanwe're, a lot better off than he
was, oh, no doubt.
We even went to the barbiemovie the other night and, lo
(30:34):
and behold, in the credits werealized that there was a
handicapped barbie.
But that is for future episodes.
We'll dive into the handicappedbarbie issues.
Speaker 1 (30:45):
Issue yeah, this isn't really a spoiler, but it
was really cool that during themovie they talked about Barbie
failed models.
If you will, Discontinues.
Speaker 2 (31:03):
Yeah discontinues?
Speaker 1 (31:04):
Yeah, and I just assumed it was, you know, but it
was made up to fit thestoryline.
But then during the creditsthey actually produced working
bottles of those Barbies,explaining why they didn't do
well, et cetera.
Speaker 2 (31:25):
Yeah, and that was where we saw the handicapped
Barbie.
So this is when Life Gives youLemons, and you can find us at
our website, atwwwwhenlifegiveyoulemonsnet have
an episode idea that you'd liketo share with us, or have any
(31:49):
comments or additions to any ofthe subjects we've talked about.
We would love to hear from you,and until then we will say
goodbye.
Speaker 1 (32:00):
What I'd like to add before we say goodbye.
Speaker 2 (32:03):
The best thing you can do, if you enjoy this
podcast or the subject material,tell somebody about it and let
them listen as well always thelast word bye, everybody we are
always looking to improve thepodcast, so if you want to hear
(32:26):
a specific topic, have adifferencing opinion, to add
something to the conversation,drop us an email.
Our contact information islisted on our website.
It'swwwwhenlifegivesyoulemonsnet.
We have recently added acompanion YouTube channel called
Making the Lemonade.
If you enjoy the podcast,continue your enjoyment by
(32:49):
joining us on YouTube.
Thank you.
Welcome to our podcast with Life Gives you
Lungs.
I'm Kevin Henry and my partnerin crime, and life is Pommy
Henry.
I have a rare disease known asspinal cell viral ataxia, which
is a neuromuscular disease.
(00:20):
This has left me with mobilitychallenges, with a speech
impediment and noise-inducedanxiety.
Speaker 2 (00:33):
Living with these disabilities for over 20 years,
we have developed helpful hintsand life lessons that we would
like to share with you.
That has made our life easierand possible in some cases.
We consider ourselvesdisability advocates and intend
to educate ourselves and youabout other disabilities and
(00:55):
issues, and also talk aboutthings we find interesting and
frequently encounter when we'reout and about.
Speaker 1 (01:13):
Hi everybody.
It's Kevin.
I want to remind you that we'restill on break between we're
after season two now, so whatwe're after season 2 now.
So what we're doing isbroadcasting some of our first
season 1 episodes during thatpause before season 3 starts.
(01:37):
This one concerns FDR in season1.
You'll probably notice I'vejust labeled the episodes as
episode one, two and so forth.
This time I'm actually going togive them an episode title I'll
(02:02):
see you next season, bye titleI'll see you next season, bye.
Speaker 2 (02:16):
Well, hello there, you have reached the when Life
Gives you Lemons podcast.
My name is Palmy.
Speaker 1 (02:24):
My name is Kevin.
Speaker 2 (02:27):
Episode two Handicapped is not a new thing,
unless it's happening to you.
So we're going to talk aboutprominent people who have been
noted to be handicapped in thepast, and the first one we're
talking about is FDR Kevin.
Speaker 1 (02:44):
FDR is kind of controversial, so it should be
noted that we're not reallydiscussing politics.
He did bad things and he didgood things.
We're talking about how heovercame his handicap to
(03:05):
accomplish what he did.
Okay, he was born in 1882,passed away while in office 1945
.
He was commonly known as FDR,which stands for Franklin Delano
Roosevelt.
(03:26):
He was actually the cousin toTeddy Roosevelt.
Speaker 2 (03:31):
And he was diagnosed with polio myelothysy and
underwent years of therapy,including hydrotherapy, at the
Warm Springs in Georgia.
Roosevelt remained paralyzedfrom the waist down and relied
on a wheelchair and leg bracesfor mobility, which he took
(03:51):
effects to conceal in public.
Let's hear a little more aboutFDR, kevin.
Do you have some more details?
Speaker 1 (03:59):
Yeah, he pretty much patterned his political career
after that of his cousin, rightdown to running for offices he
had on his way to the presidency.
At one point he was secretaryof the Navy.
(04:22):
Another point he was electedGovernor of New.
Speaker 2 (04:27):
York.
Now that was twice.
He was elected twice for that.
Speaker 1 (04:31):
That was in the 20s and 30s when he moved into
government Governor's Mansion inAlbany.
He had the governor's mansionmade handicapped accessible with
(04:55):
ramps and doorways.
His wheelchair would fitthrough, also an elevator he
also had an elevator.
There was a time he woresteel-like braces and he would
kind of stiff-leggedly approacha podium and then kind of use
that to prop himself up and leanon In the public eye.
(05:18):
He wasn't displaying hisdisability, wasn't displaying
his disability.
He kind of kept that out of thepublic eye, although it was
more or less no one secret tothe media that covered his
career.
They would respect his privacyand to this day there are only
(05:43):
three known photographs of FDRin a wheelchair.
Speaker 2 (05:49):
Show here a quote from journalist John Guthner,
who reported that in the 1930she often met people in Europe,
including world leaders, whowere unaware of Roosevelt's
paralysis.
David Brinkley, who was a youngWhite House reporter in World
War II, stated that the SecretService actively interfered with
(06:09):
photographers who tried to takephotos of Roosevelt in a
wheelchair or being moved byothers.
The Secret Service commonlydestroyed photographs they
caught being taken in thismanner.
However, there are occasionalexceptions, like the three that
you quoted.
This manner.
Speaker 1 (06:25):
however, there are occasional exceptions, like the
three that you quoted.
Mr Hugh Gallagher, a disabilityadvocate, theorized that
Roosevelt was desperate toappear able-bodied.
Back then, if you were notconsidered able-bodied, you
(06:48):
pretty much suffered for it.
Speaker 2 (06:50):
Well, they just thought you weren't able to do
the job that they were electingyou for, so he was desperate for
them to be elected.
Speaker 1 (06:58):
So it was part of his strategy campaign strategy part
of his strategy campaignstrategy and that pretty much
pertained to all of hispolitical offices, not just the
presidency.
As you all know, in the pastit's been the practice that a
(07:19):
politician will work his waythrough several offices before
announcing candidacy for thepresident.
Even though his party knew hewas disabled, he had shown in
the past he's able to do well inpolitics.
Speaker 2 (07:42):
Well, he was thought of as a fighter and, better yet,
as an underdog, and not a manto pity, not a man to envy, but
a man to cheer for.
Speaker 1 (07:53):
The actual diagnosis for him has come into question
in modern times because thepolio related diagnosis that he
had received at the time was,like, very limited in scope,
(08:16):
because polio was a new drug oneverybody's, new disease on
everyone's mind and they justassumed that's what it was.
It was somehow affecting hismobility.
Speaker 2 (08:43):
But what do they think?
It is now Kev.
Speaker 1 (08:45):
In 2003,.
Modern scientists and doctorsput their heads together and
concluded in a study publishedby Armand Goldman.
They used three differentmethods that are part of the
diagnosis process that isundergone now Observation,
(09:16):
basically pattern recognition,reconstructing the effects of
the disease, and one that I'mnot sure of the word how to
pronounce this or what itentails it's Baylesian analysis.
(09:39):
And the conclusion wasGuillain-Barre syndrome, gbs,
was more probable than his polioDiagnosis Diagnosis, in their
opinion.
Now, you have to bear in mindthat they didn't have a patient
to examine.
(10:00):
They're just reading about hislifestyle, reviewing some of the
tests that doctors had donewhen he was alive and possibly
some of the family records aswell.
There's Prangle and DelanoRoosevelt Memorial and as part
(10:26):
of that he's sitting in awheelchair.
He's the only public official Iknow in a wheelchair in a
statue that's in Washington DC,if you care to see it.
The wheelchair statue was notoriginally included in the
(10:48):
memorial.
It was added in January 2001because of the concerns of
disability rights advocates andfundraising by the National
Organization on Disability.
Fundraising by the NationalOrganization on Disability.
Speaker 2 (11:06):
So Franklin D Roosevelt was elected three
times as president of the UnitedStates.
Speaker 1 (11:15):
I believe that was four times.
Speaker 2 (11:17):
Oh, four times you're right.
And he remained the presidentuntil his death.
Speaker 1 (11:21):
Basically he died in office because basically he
worked himself to death.
Doctors kept trying to tell himto take things more easily than
he had been, but with the wargoing on and the rigors of the
(11:45):
job, he just never found theability to do that.
He felt it was his job togovern and he didn't hold back
on that.
Fdr remained the leader ofAmerica until his death in 1945,
(12:06):
when his vice president, harryTruman, was assumed the
presidency upon his demise.
Speaker 2 (12:18):
He did lots of good things for the country was very
strong during the World War II,but there are some actions that
are kind of questionable in hisum history.
Um one was the um removing theum asian people from their homes
(12:38):
and into what are they calledthey called them internment
camps.
Internment camps, yeah, butbasically they are concentration
camps.
Speaker 1 (12:50):
That term was developed in the 1800s.
It is simply depicting a campthat is filled with the
concentration of people that youdesire to be in one place, as
opposed to the wordconcentration camp.
(13:12):
When Nazi Germany was roundingup people, putting them in death
camps, they made theinternational distinction
between concentration camps,which you know.
If you Get down to brass tacks,that could be a prison, it
(13:35):
could be a medical facility, itcould be anywhere.
You're capturing people who areconfined not of their own free
will.
Speaker 2 (13:47):
He also earned a Nobel Peace Prize.
Speaker 1 (13:51):
It was his work selling a war between the
Russians and the Japanese.
Speaker 2 (13:58):
In 1906, that was prior to him being the president
.
Speaker 1 (14:01):
And he was the first American to win a Nobel Prize.
Speaker 2 (14:08):
He was the 32nd president, did four terms, like
you said, died in office, but hemade it very obvious throughout
his whole life to try to appearable-bodied versus handicapped.
But in the long run he did very, quite a few things for the
(14:30):
handicapped to help with, withhandicap being handicapped.
One of the things was heinitiated the ADA.
Speaker 1 (14:42):
The Americans with Disabilities Act.
Speaker 2 (14:46):
And what did that?
Can you explain a little bitabout that, kevin?
Speaker 1 (15:02):
saying that disabled people with impairments have the
right to participate in societyin public without being
discriminated against.
It goes on.
It mentions examples, butthey're not hard and fast
definitions of disabilities, sonone are mentioned, more than
(15:23):
others.
Speaker 2 (15:24):
The main point of it was that in prior, individuals
who had experienceddiscrimination on the base of
being disabled had often had nolegal recourse to aggress any
discretions.
So this allowed it was a law.
It allowed people to have someway to fight against the
(15:49):
discrimination.
Speaker 1 (15:51):
Yeah, just FYI, I did reach out to a lawyer's office
that specializes indisability-related cases.
I'm still waiting to hear backfrom them.
It's been several weeks and Ireally don't think they're going
to contact me.
Speaker 2 (16:13):
There were some interesting things.
When Kevin actually read theentire act, how many pages was
it?
Kev.
Speaker 1 (16:22):
It was actually.
If you go to wwwadaorg, you canread this stuff for yourself,
but I digress here it wasn'tlike pages printed out.
(16:43):
It was a website.
Speaker 2 (16:44):
Oh, okay.
Speaker 1 (16:45):
There were like four or five tabs.
They broke down different areasand such, so I can't really
tell you how many pages it was.
Speaker 2 (16:58):
It was a lot.
Speaker 1 (17:00):
There was a lot of information there, including a
lot of information I hadn'treally considered or expected.
Speaker 2 (17:10):
Can you give us an example?
Speaker 1 (17:12):
Yeah, one of those you're considered disabled under
the ADA if you're a cancersurvivor but you're genetically
predisposed to have cancer, solike if you're genetically
(17:35):
predisposed to have breastcancer and have survived breast
cancer that cancer can't comeback at any time.
So they keep you as a, theydon't keep you there, categorize
you as a disabled personbecause that illness may come
(18:02):
back and you may have the samedisabilities you had before so,
even though you've survived,you're still considered
handicapped Correct and have theADA protection against it.
However, let's be clear aboutthis thing.
(18:23):
There's things that youremployer cannot do.
They cannot hire or fire youbased on your disabled status,
they cannot pay you less thanyour coworkers, et cetera, et
(18:47):
cetera.
Now, aside from handicappedspaces, where they give clear
(19:07):
dimensions and basically saystates will have their own
system for providing permits forthem.
So, for example, my state isgoing to be different than
another state theoretically,than another state theoretically
, but it's up to the state andlocal government to enforce
those laws as if they were theirown state's laws.
Speaker 2 (19:29):
So, basically, there might be some little changes in
between, but the basic thoughtof the law is followed through.
Speaker 1 (19:35):
Well, true, that's also the way innovation comes
around here.
Speaker 2 (19:41):
Yeah.
Speaker 1 (19:55):
If somebody sees a problem in these things either
differently or you know, can Isay better than everybody else,
based on the needs of theircommunity, I will wager.
There are some parts of thecountry Appalachia comes to mind
where they have a lot of coalminers that have spent their
lives under hazardous conditionsand they are limited by
(20:21):
disabilities that we will neversee.
Speaker 2 (20:26):
Being that we work above the ground, they have
things like a black lung.
Speaker 1 (20:32):
They had to overcome A black lung they had to
overcome.
There are other professions aswell that are hazardous that way
, but usually they don't spendall day.
Every day under thoseconditions Makes sense In the
(20:53):
present day.
Coal should be declining as anindustry, so that probably means
there are fewer people miningcoal, so those specific
disabilities may have a lesserimpact on communities in those
(21:15):
areas.
Speaker 2 (21:17):
But then you have others where they go to nuclear
and then you got side effectsfrom that too.
Like you said, it just allowsthe ADA to advance based on what
is the need of the day or theneed of the area based on what
is the need of the day or theneed of the area.
Speaker 1 (21:42):
Yeah, the ADA was constructed as a living document
that can be updated as needed.
Obviously, medical conditionssuch as polio are not as great
of a concern nowadays as theywere in the 30s and 40s, and
even on to the 50s.
Speaker 2 (22:04):
Yeah, I also saw in the research you were doing that
FDR established the March ofDimes, and that is.
I didn't know it, but the dimewas chosen to honor Roosevelt
after his death because of that,because he was associated with
the March of Dimes.
Speaker 1 (22:24):
Yeah, I think that's really a cool idea Because, like
other presidents that have beenon currency, just been
well-known and put on currency,he was put on that dime for a
reason, so I thought that waskind of cool.
Speaker 2 (22:49):
Yeah, and back in his day it was focused on
rehabilitation of the victims ofthe polio.
And nowadays, since that is notan issue that we work with
currently, I'm sure there aresome polio out there, but
because we have the poliovaccine now.
(23:12):
The March of Dimes focuses onpreventing premature births and
congenitive disabilities andinfant mortality.
Speaker 1 (23:18):
One of the things that Roosevelt accomplished is
he opened the door for otherpeople with disabilities.
For example, Governor Abbott ofTexas is in a wheelchair.
He was injured in 1984 as hewas in a campaign for, I believe
(23:46):
, the state attorney general,and it injured his spinal cord,
so basically, he lost mobilityfrom the waist down.
Speaker 2 (24:00):
That was because a tree fell on him right.
Speaker 1 (24:03):
You know, it's a totally different environment
that he's undergone in hispolitical career than FDR did.
Speaker 2 (24:17):
FDR tended to avoid being vulnerable and disabled
because at the time that was theviewpoint of the public
concerning disabled people,whereas today, because of
(24:40):
accomplishments made by people,uh fdr public figures like fdr,
governor abbott is very openabout his disability well, I
know there's also quite a few ummilitary veterans that um have
lost limbs and and stuff likethat that are part of congress
(25:04):
in different states well,actually, um, when they entered
into the longer wars in Iraq andAfghanistan, losing a limb or
having an impairment in a limbwas not automatically
disqualifying you from militaryservice, really disqualifying
(25:26):
you for military service.
Really.
Speaker 1 (25:30):
You would see some people go on in their military
careers, perhaps not in the jobsthey had when they suffered the
injury.
Speaker 2 (25:48):
But they would go on until they retired a normal
career.
That's excellent.
That's a great example of howadvanced the handicap life has
become due to things like theADA and March of Dimes and all
the other things that we'vementioned here.
Speaker 1 (26:06):
Yeah, if you have problems with your job
concerning your disability, youshould contact a lawyer and find
out what your employer may ormay not have done in the terms
of violating your rights grantedto you under the Disability Act
(26:31):
.
You can contact the ADA teamfor help with that.
They can give you some adviceon lawyers to speak to and have
a general understanding to speakto and have a general
(26:56):
understanding of what is notpermissible as far as
disabilities in the workplace.
So bottom line if you thinkyou're being discriminated
against, you have avenues outthere to talk to people and find
out what your situation maylead you towards.
A civil zoo perhaps the ADAoffice itself does not go after
(27:26):
individual employers go afterindividual employers.
but they concentrate on laws ingovernment, making sure that
laws are not singling outdisabled people and trying to
(27:46):
correct those if they are, andtrying to correct those if they
are.
But they do, in fact, work witha team of lawyers who will
(28:08):
refer you to a lawyer that willhelp you with civil matters.
If it's not a law, an unjustlaw, they don't deal with it.
Speaker 2 (28:20):
It's a civil matter and they will try to get you in
contact with the lawyer that canhandle it civilly.
So to conclude here, kevin, itlooks like things have really
advanced in the Department ofHandicapped Accessibility.
I mean, we always have placesto improve, but we definitely
are a lot better off than wewere in FDR's time.
Speaker 1 (28:41):
One thing that we should reexamine I think in the
ADA is there are so manybuildings that are grandfathered
in.
The bottom line is if it's asituation where they don't have
(29:15):
to apply.
This goes for businesses andparticularly I don't want to
single out an industry, but thehotel industry a lot of the
buildings you see, airbnbs orjust older construction that
(29:39):
didn't happen after the ADA, sothey're grandfathered in
automatically and they theyshould reexamine make it perhaps
a little bit more difficult fora public or a agency or a
(30:01):
business to advertise howhandicapped accessible they are
when there is absolutely nothinghandicapped accessible about it
.
Speaker 2 (30:13):
Great and that will lead to more and more
advancements.
But compared to what it was inFDR's time, I'm sure it's a lot
better off than we're a lotbetter off than he was.
Oh, no doubt better off thanwe're, a lot better off than he
was, oh, no doubt.
We even went to the barbiemovie the other night and, lo
(30:34):
and behold, in the credits werealized that there was a
handicapped barbie.
But that is for future episodes.
We'll dive into the handicappedbarbie issues.
Speaker 1 (30:45):
Issue yeah, this isn't really a spoiler, but it
was really cool that during themovie they talked about Barbie
failed models.
If you will, Discontinues.
Speaker 2 (31:03):
Yeah discontinues?
Speaker 1 (31:04):
Yeah, and I just assumed it was, you know, but it
was made up to fit thestoryline.
But then during the creditsthey actually produced working
bottles of those Barbies,explaining why they didn't do
well, et cetera.
Speaker 2 (31:25):
Yeah, and that was where we saw the handicapped
Barbie.
So this is when Life Gives youLemons, and you can find us at
our website, atwwwwhenlifegiveyoulemonsnet have
an episode idea that you'd liketo share with us, or have any
(31:49):
comments or additions to any ofthe subjects we've talked about.
We would love to hear from you,and until then we will say
goodbye.
Speaker 1 (32:00):
What I'd like to add before we say goodbye.
Speaker 2 (32:03):
The best thing you can do, if you enjoy this
podcast or the subject material,tell somebody about it and let
them listen as well always thelast word bye, everybody we are
always looking to improve thepodcast, so if you want to hear
(32:26):
a specific topic, have adifferencing opinion, to add
something to the conversation,drop us an email.
Our contact information islisted on our website.
It'swwwwhenlifegivesyoulemonsnet.
We have recently added acompanion YouTube channel called
Making the Lemonade.
If you enjoy the podcast,continue your enjoyment by
(32:49):
joining us on YouTube.
Thank you.
Host
Jetheswaran Gunasekaran
Popular Podcasts
Stuff You Should Know
If you've ever wanted to know about champagne, satanism, the Stonewall Uprising, chaos theory, LSD, El Nino, true crime and Rosa Parks, then look no further. Josh and Chuck have you covered.
Dateline NBC
Current and classic episodes, featuring compelling true-crime mysteries, powerful documentaries and in-depth investigations. Follow now to get the latest episodes of Dateline NBC completely free, or subscribe to Dateline Premium for ad-free listening and exclusive bonus content: DatelinePremium.com
New Heights with Jason & Travis Kelce
Football’s funniest family duo — Jason Kelce of the Philadelphia Eagles and Travis Kelce of the Kansas City Chiefs — team up to provide next-level access to life in the league as it unfolds. The two brothers and Super Bowl champions drop weekly insights about the weekly slate of games and share their INSIDE perspectives on trending NFL news and sports headlines. They also endlessly rag on each other as brothers do, chat the latest in pop culture and welcome some very popular and well-known friends to chat with them. Check out new episodes every Wednesday. Follow New Heights on the Wondery App, YouTube or wherever you get your podcasts. You can listen to new episodes early and ad-free, and get exclusive content on Wondery+. Join Wondery+ in the Wondery App, Apple Podcasts or Spotify. And join our new membership for a unique fan experience by going to the New Heights YouTube channel now!