International Year of Disabled Persons, 1981

Not only was 1981 the United Nations’ International Year of Disabled Persons (IYDP), but the following period 1983-1992 was proclaimed the UN Decade of Disabled Persons, emphasizing the need for increased awareness of and commitment to address the living conditions of people with disabilities worldwide. The Year’s key goal was to affirm and implement the principle “full participation and equality” contained in the UN General Assembly’s 1975 Declaration on the Rights of Disabled Persons. Disabled people should participate fully in communities, self-identify their needs, and share in their societies’ socio-economic development. However, continued social and political action, advocacy, and awareness-raising is needed everywhere to more completely realize these goals.