“He wanted people to take risks”: An underdog movement’s astonishing rise

If you were born after 1990, it might be easy to think that the world has always had wheelchair ramps, closed captions, and bathroom stalls for people with disabilities. But none of those things existed until a few decades ago - and they all had to be demanded. Until a group of confrontational activists emerged out of Berkeley in the 1960s, it was legal to discriminate against people with disabilities. All that changed thanks to the radical students who built one of the most successful movements of the 20th century. Today’s episode features my interview with Scot Danforth, the author of “An Independent Man: Ed Roberts and the Fight for Disability Rights” (UC Press). Listen now to hear about how a man who couldn’t move his arms or legs changed laws, architecture, and society’s view on people with disabilities. To see photos and links related to this episode, visit: Don’t forget to follow the East Bay Yesterday Substack for updates on events, boat tours, exhibits, and other local history news: Donate to keep this show alive:

You can listen to “He wanted people to take risks”: An underdog movement’s astonishing rise online on Radio and Podcast. Open the player on this page to stream the available audio.

“He wanted people to take risks”: An underdog movement’s astonishing rise is an episode from East Bay Yesterday by East Bay Yesterday.

This episode is 00:58:09 long.

This episode was published on Nov 12, 2025.

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