Mark Romoser discusses the life of the late Lois Curtis. Curtis was one of the people with disabilities who were plaintiffs in the landmark civil rights case Olmstead v. L.C. E.W. Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg wrote the majority opinion that declared that, under the ADA, people like Lois had the right to live in the community rather than in large institutions. And so she did.
We speak to four friends and colleagues of Lois Curtis: Linda Pogue, Lee Sanders, Ken Mitchell, and Grover Hogan.
Lois Curtis appeared at a 25th-anniversary ADA celebration at the Smithsonian in Washington, visited the White House and met President Obama. She was an African American artist who lived with intellectual and developmental disabilities as well as schizophrenia. Lois loved music, had a great smile, was in great demand as a public speaker and wrote many letters. She died on November 10, 2022.
A documentary produced by Carl King about Lois Curtis is called The Art of Being LC.