ADDRESS, GOVERNOR'S COMMITTEE TO
PROMOTE EMPLOYMENT OF THE HANDICAPPED

BALTIMORE

April 20, 1960

It is gratifying to me, as Governor of the State, to see the young people
of Maryland displaying so much interest in a subject which is close to
my heart—the employment of handicapped men and women.

The committee which I appointed to handle this important problem
in Maryland has done a splendid job in persuading businessmen and
other employers that it is to their advantage to hire handicapped per-
sons. This poster contest is just one of many projects the committee has
sponsored to promote a good idea—the idea that the employment of
these people not only improves the lot of the handicapped themselves
but contributes to the general welfare of the State.

My role here today is to present prizes to the students who were
adjudged winners in the 1960 essay and poster contests. To each of you
individually, I extend my commendation for your accomplishment.

It is a pleasure to welcome the parents and the teachers of these
students at these ceremonies.

Returning once more to this subject of the employment of handi-
capped persons, the greatest job we have performed in this area has
been to remove certain prejudices in the minds of employers and to
convince them that men and women with physical handicaps have both
the will and the capacity to become useful citizens. Normal employ-
ment is the first goal a handicapped person must reach in the somewhat
difficult journey he must take to become a completely productive, and
therefore a happy, citizen.

In spite of all the gains we have made in the field, we know that many
jobs which these people are capable of holding are closed to them be-
cause of their disability. We need hardly expect an employer to hire a
person because of his disability. What we have to do is convince him
that he should consider the abilities, and not the disabilities of a pros-
pective employee.

Handicapped persons have demonstrated convincingly that, if prop-
erly placed and assigned, they can produce just as much, and in many
cases even more, than employees without disabilities. Studies have been
made which have showed that impaired employees frequently look
better than their unimpaired coworkers in such things as absenteeism

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