The first Disability Pride Parade in New York City drew thousands of people, and some of the participants are hoping it will start conversations and produce change.
Cara Liebowitz was there. She's an activist, writer and blogger.
"I'd like to see just the culture of fear around disability dissipate a little bit, you know, especially with new technology emerging, it feels like we're heading into another eugenics movement, and that's really scary to think that there are organizations and people that actively want people like me eradicated. So I think it's really important that we push back against a modern eugenics movement and that we assert ourselves and say that we're disabled, we don't want to be wiped out, a lot of us don't want to be cured, we're happy the way we are."
Emily Ladau's blog is called "Words I Wheel By."
"I talk a lot about stigmatization of disability, I talk about what it's like to live with a disability and what it's like to function in society with a disability. I think that a lot of people who don't see it from the inside don't really understand, but it's not for a lack of trying it's just because we're not communicating as well as we could be and because they're not communicating with us as well as they could be. So if we can open the dialogue up and explain what's going on in the world of disability and make it less scary and intimidating for people without disabilities, then I think that we can really kind of integrate everything a lot better in society."
April Coughlin is an education and disability advocate and is part of the group "Women on Wheels." She was pleased with the first disability pride parade in the big apple.
"Oh yeah, I was actually surprised that as many people came as they did, especially on a 90 degree day. It was awesome. I can't wait to do it next year, and yeah, disability pride. Woo!"

New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio announced at the start of the parade that July has been named "Disability Pride Month." I'm Doug Doyle, WBGO News.