Disability Discrimination

Individuals with disabilities have physical or mental impairments that prevent their executing one or more major life functions in the species-typical way. This general conceptualization orients discussions of the moral and political dimensions of disability discrimination. For legal purposes, however, who is subject to and protected from disability discrimination is determined by statutory language or judicial interpretations, both of which vary from jurisdiction to jurisdiction.

Individuals considered to have disabilities under the U.S. Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) must have or be regarded as having a physical or mental condition that substantially limits a major life activity. Under the California Fair Employment and Housing Act (FEHA), however, individuals for whom success in a major life activity is fully achievable but made more difficult than usual because ...