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are the components of how we function in our society, whether we be able bodied or disabled.

Having traveled through the United States, Canada, Mexico, Brazil, sub-Saharan Africa, and Japan; also, most of Western Europe and parts of Eastern Europe as a disabled individual and a wheelchair athlete, I have had an opportunity to compare the extent to which other countries have addressed the needs and problems of their disabled populations.

Furthermore, I have been able to speak directly with hundreds of disabled persons and professional providers of services in those countries regarding the differences in our cultures and how this affects government policy relative to handicapped individuals.

Repeatedly, these conversations indicate that there is a great need for the United States to continue to set an example in this area for the rest of the world. Thus, as governmental and professional representatives of those countries, be they able bodied or disabled, visit this country to learn how we are attempting to solve problems relating to disability, it provides a learning experience for such persons and an opportunity for them to critique well-established model programs in this country which may then be utilized in their respective countries.

We would hope to continue such exchange programs and to encourage such voluntary partnership efforts in all areas of education, particularly special education, for the mutual benefit of our disabled population and those who live in other countries. Should this effort be made, then the Decade of the Disabled will have achieved some degree of substance which would make the Decade of the Disabled in the United States, which has already borne a rich harvest, an even greater success than even the most optimistic individual ever envisioned.

Mr. Chairman, that concludes my comments. I would be happy to answer any questions you or the other members might have. Thank you.

Mr. YATRON. Thank you very much, Secretary Conn, for a very fine statement.

Ambassador McDonald, this is a decade proclaimed by the United Nations. What has the United Nations and its specialized agencies done to provide employment opportunities for the handicapped?

Ambassador MCDONALD. Not nearly as much as they should. As a matter of fact, at the beginning of ÏYDP 1981, in December 1980, I was forced to make a statement in the United Nations calling upon Mr. Waldheim, the Secretary General of the United Nations, to personally involve himself in the decision to hire handicapped persons for the U.N. center concerned with the problems of the handicapped.

I also had to call upon him to make the U.N. centers in Vienna and New York accessible. The United Nations, unfortunately, in the Secretariat sense, has not taken the kind of leadership role that it should.

I am pleased to report, however, that immediate action was taken after that statement, and that the United Nations itself and the specialized agencies are much more acutely aware today about the need for hiring and involving handicapped persons in their

staff and in their programs and projects. I would say that the World Health Organization and the International Labor Organization are probably the two in the forefront at the present time in this field.

Mr. YATRON. Could you provide to the subcommittee, for the record, a breakdown on what international organizations have done internally for the handicapped, what they plan to do during the decade; also, to the extent they are program-oriented, what they each plan to do over the decade to support national programs? Ambassador MCDONALD. Yes, certainly. With pleasure.

Mr. YATRON. Thank you, Secretary McDonald.

I had a question for Dr. Elder and Secretary Conn, but they answered them in their statements, so I will pass and call on Congressman Winn.

Mr. WINN. Thank you, Mr. Chairman. I do not have any questions. We have so many witnesses today, I am afraid we may run out of time before we hear from all the witnesses. I would suggest that maybe the subcommittee listen to the witnesses, and then possibly save questions until the very last.

I am not trying to tell you how to run your subcommittee. [Laughter.]

Mr. YATRON. We appreciate any advice. We thank the gentleman from Kansas.

We want to thank you folks for being here today and giving us your views.

We have quite a number of witnesses today, as the Congressman has said, from the private sector. I want to welcome all of you to the hearing, both our witnesses and all of the others interested in this important area of concern.

I would like to have the following people come to the witness table: Mr. DeVos, Dr. Spenser, Mr. Reich, and Mayor Aldridge.

In addition to those actually testifying, we have quite a number of individuals who would like to have their views made known. Without objection, we will include such statements in the hearing record. 2

Mr. YATRON. I would ask each witness to briefly summarize their prepared statements, which we will include in the record in their entirety.

Our first witness from the private sector is Mr. Richard DeVos, president and founder of the Amway Corp., and chairman of the National Organization on Disability, which has been of tremendous help to the subcommittee in preparing for these hearings.

Mr. DeVos.

STATEMENT OF RICHARD DeVOS, CHAIRMAN, NATIONAL
ORGANIZATION ON DISABILITY

Mr. DEVOS. Thank you, Mr. Chairman.

It is a great privilege to testify before your subcommittee today on behalf of the Decade of Disabled Persons.

I would like to thank you for calling this hearing on the Decade's objectives and to congratulate Congressman Winn and Congress

1 The information is retained in subcommittee files.

2 See app. 8.

man Coelho on their sponsorship of House Concurrent Resolution 39.

In 1981, I was asked to serve as honorary chairman of the International Year of the Disabled program in Kent County, Mich., where I live. This program, which I was honored to serve, was just one of thousands organized at the community, State, and national level in response to the challenge posed by the U.S. Council for the International Year of Disabled Persons.

As a result of the nationwide call to continue what had been started by the Council in reaching out to the public and the private sectors, the U.N. General Assembly proclaimed the years stretching from 1983 to 1992 the "Decade of the Disabled."

The United States has long been recognized as the leader in providing opportunities for disabled persons, and other nations continue to seek our guidance in dealing with this situation. More than 130 nations have established national commissions for the year, and many have also started programs to continue their work.

As you know, there are 35 million people with disabilities in America alone. If you stop to consider how many other Americans, spouses, children, relatives, are affected by the lives of these disabled individuals, you begin to have some idea of the magnitude of the challenge we are facing.

In calling attention to the opportunity to help our many disabled citizens be more productive, the Decade of Disabled Persons is challenging us to set an example for the rest of the world.

As you know, Mr. Chairman, I served on the board of directors of the U.S. Council for the International Year of Disabled Persons. This was the first time that an International Year observance in any country of the world was spearheaded by the private sector rather than by government.

One of the things we did then was to bring together private sector leaders from corporations, disability organizations, the rehabilitation community, and others, to decide how corporations could in fact further the long-term goals of and for disabled Americans for the Decade of Disabled Persons.

Out of that conference came a 10-point action program. I think, Mr. Chairman, this program fits a very practical agenda which it would be wise for us to follow through the decade. And today I call upon America's corporations to join with me in carrying out the following 10-point program:

One, set up a high-level management committee to recommend and monitor special initiatives for services, products, employment, and community action in the area of disability.

Two, to develop special career planning and hiring for disabled employees, taking their special needs into account.

Three, review the company's products and services to determine what additions or modifications might benefit disabled persons and the company itself.

Four, review opportunities for enhancing the productivity of disabled workers through special innovative accommodations.

Five, to review and improve accessibility for work areas for disabled persons.

Six, to sponsor and participate in community job training programs for disabled persons which will identify and help place qualified applicants in the local work force.

Seven, sponsor local branch activities with the local chapters of disability-related organizations.

Eight, sponsor award and recognition programs for disability organizations.

Nine, feature disability articles in company publications, newsletters, annual reports, et cetera, and sponsor commercials as public service advertising to further attitudinal understanding and specific goals of the Decade of Disabled Persons.

Ten, encourage management and employees through special incentive programs to become involved with disability organizations throughout the United States, including the National Organization on Disability's, community partnership committees in over 1,000 communities throughout the country.

I am happy to announce today, Mr. Chairman, that IBM Corp., has made available to the National Organization on Disability a high-level executive, Mr. John Stanford, to direct the program I have outlined above. We call it our corporate partnership program. You will be hearing more about it as John and all of us promote this 10-point program throughout America throughout the decade. This is a great example of corporate social responsibility in action, and we are all most grateful to IBM president John Opel and his fine company for leading the way.

Aside from my overall concern that Americans meet this challenge in making a better life possible for disabled persons, I would like to comment on the particular responsibility and opportunity those of us in the business community share.

The Decade of Disabled Persons presents a formidable agenda. We have all seen corporate social responsibility awaken the consciousness of hundreds of thousands of business leaders in the past two decades. This is a task which the corporate community can and must tackle.

As I look at the long-term goals set forth in the resolution introduced by Congressman Winn and Congressman Coelho, I see many ways in which America's business community can help. I must say that this is not solely in the interest of disabled persons. It makes good business sense to reduce the welfare cost of disability and enable the disabled to become self-supporting citizens.

It is in the best interest of all of us to make this happen, and this is what disabled people themselves tell me that they want.

The Decade of Disabled Persons offers America's corporations, large and small, many opportunities to help solve the problems of disability. Improving public attitudes toward disabled persons is a challenge which we in the corporate community are well prepared to take on through our communications networks and corporate outreach programs.

As cofounder and president of Amway Corp., I am proud to say that Amway does employ a number of disabled people, and we have a great number of disabled people who are part of our selling organization. We do send out piecework from our manufacturing plant to sheltered workshops run by Goodwill Industries and Pine Rest Rehabilitation Services.

Bob Muller, disabled by cerebral palsy, was able to get his first job at Amway. I recall the day he came to me and we discussed it, just after he graduated from college. He went on to become an administrator in management at Steelcase, another Grand Rapids company. Bob not only overcame his disability, but he is also reaching out to his fellow man by conducting workshops for the disabled at colleges and corporations throughout the country.

I should add that Steelcase has an exceptional program for the disabled worker, with a sheltered workshop right in their own factory, where people can work at their own pace.

There are many Bob Mullers among the disabled, people who demonstrate those attributes that we think of as intrinsically American, concern for others, a spirit of optimism, and the conviction that given the opportunity, they can do anything.

We have chosen a new series of ads at the national organization here that we hope will exemplify this spirit for all Americans. Behind me is the first-it is located on the wall over there-the first of a series of posters expressing the spirit of optimism with the simple words, "I can." As this ad campaign progresses, I hope that more and more Americans, the able as well as the disabled, will be caught up in the spirit of "I can.'

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The United Nations understands, as do those of us with the National Organization on Disability, that this goal cannot be reached overnight. We must keep up the momentum. Through the tremendous grassroots network that has sprung up, through participation in the youth awareness and the community partnership programs, and through the corporate partnership program, Americans can better utilize the resources of their 35 million disabled fellow citizens, and inspire millions of people in other lands as well.

In conclusion, I would like to quote a sign that we have in our International Year office in Kent County. It says, "We are taking a whole new look at disability. Maybe you should, too *** There is a lot of ability in disability."

It is also my belief that the disabled can lead the rest of American citizens who, in too many cases, although they are fully able, have forgotten to remember their blessings and work with the talents they were given.

I hope this organization can play a leader role, not of just helping those disabled, but of inspiring all Americans everywhere.

Thank you, Mr. Chairman, for allowing me this opportunity to speak to you today.

Mr. YATRON. Thank you very much, Mr. DeVos, for a very fine statement.

Our second witness is Dr. William Spenser, a pediatrician who is president of the Institute for Rehabilitation and Research, chairman of the department of rehabilitation at Baylor College of Medicine, and former director of the National Institute for Handicapped Research.

Dr. Spenser.

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