Firearm Violence, Disability Rights, and Rehabilitation

Abstract

The demographics of disability in the United States are changing. A rapidly increasing minority within the larger disabled population consists of individuals who have become disabled as the direct result of firearm-related violence. This population of individuals differs markedly from those disabled from birth or as a result of accident or chronic illness, causes that have historically been familiar to our established medical and rehabilitation systems. Firearm victims tend to be younger and relatively poorly educated and are disproportionately drawn from ethnic and minority communities. Furthermore, many seem to have a host of previous problems : alcohol and drug dependency, HIV+ status, and prior histories of domestic and interpersonal violence. To date, we know little about this population, but what we do know indicates that attending to their needs will represent a substantial challenge to the current rehabilitation system and to the disability rights community.