Former Iowa Senator and Parade Grand Marshal Tom Harkin helped author the Americans with Disabilities Act in 1990. And while he praised New York City for a quarter-century of curb cuts, widened doorways and workplace accommodations, Harkin on Sunday wasn't above gently ribbing his hosts.
"When I go to London, mayor, and I hail a cab, every cab is fully accessible in London — every single one," Harkin said to a cheering crowd near the Flatiron Building. "That should be our goal here."
Mayor Bill de Blasio took the bait.
"All you had to do was say, 'London is doing better,' to get my competitive fire going," de Blasio said, alluding to the city's current goal of 50 percent accessible cabs by the year 2020. "So we're really committed now."
Both men and other leaders and advocates said the city and the nation have come far in the last 25 years, but they said there is still much room for improvement. Harkin said the biggest area to work on is finding good job opportunities for people with disabilities.
"It is way past time, when young people with disabilities should be given the same opportunities for competitive employment as every other young person in America," he said, rather than being "pipe-lined into sub-minimal-wage jobs, dead-end jobs, with no opportunity for advancement."
Harkin said at a time when the national unemployment rate is around 5 percent, the unemployment rate for adults with disabilities who are willing and able to work is around 60 percent.
Matthew Clark, 33, and many other marchers agreed. He works in media and film.
"We make up 18 percent of the population, and we're 3 percent of the characters on TV, and when we are in movies, non-disabled characters play the roles," said Clark, who has needed a wheelchair to get around his entire life. "We don't accept that for other groups. Why can't we represent ourselves on screen?"
Harkin praised several large employers, including Walgreen's, Wal-Mart, Best Buy and Procter and Gamble for committing to hire more disabled people. He said the government needed to find incentives to encourage other businesses to follow their lead.
"It's starting to take hold," Harkin said. "What employers are finding out is sometimes with just a little modification of a workplace, a person with a disability they hire will be one of their most productive, loyal employees."
