Disability movement - Ed Roberts and Adolf Ratzka

Adolf Ratzka in 1970as a student at University of California, Los Angeles interviewed by filmmaker Werner Herzog

In this video excerpt, Ed Roberts discusses the history and future of the independent living movement in the U.S. The video is produced by the Research and Training Center on Independent Living at the University of Kansas. 

A self-proclaimed cripple, Ed was a catalyst and cosmic thinker. He built a life for himself as a person with polio, then laid the foundation for millions of other people with disabilities to build similar lives. Ed said, "Everybody has a future." He meant it, lived it and helped others achieve it.

This video incorporates a 1981 speech that Ed Roberts gave to independent-living activists with photos depicitng the ongoing struggle of people throughout the world for the rights and independence modeled by this visionary leader. 

For more information and to order the complete video, visit www.rtcil.org, e-mail rtcil@ku.edu, or call 785-864-4095.