How an act of civil disobedience in 1978 Denver helped propel disability rights

NPR | By Joseph Shapiro

Published March 19, 2026 at 4:16 PM EDT

On July 5-6, 1978, on a busy downtown Denver street, 19 people in wheelchairs blocked public buses--which didn't have wheelchair lifts--to demand access to public transit.

Joseph Shapiro

Joseph Shapiro is a NPR News Investigations correspondent.

See stories by Joseph Shapiro

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