Prior to the 1960s, people were given labels based on certain tests that were created by professors and scientists. These labels were doled out accordingly, based on the information acquired from the test results. Such labels included lunatic, idiot, defective, and delinquent, causing many of these individuals to be placed in asylums or to be considered unfit for school or work. Along with the labeling of these individuals came widespread beliefs and ideas as to why children were born in this manner, and why some adults began behaving in certain ways. At the local level children and adults had been misdiagnosed, leading to misplacement in hospitals and asylums, and also causing a severe misunderstanding of individuals with disabilities.
On the federal level, however, changes were beginning to take place to provide better treatment and a deeper understanding of people with disabilities. The country had been dealing with what would be one of the major issues in education that lead to the 1954 case of Brown v. The Board of Education of Topeka, segregation based on race. While the court's ruling to disband segregation was seen as a victory for African American families, this had little to no impact on children with disabilities. In 1967 many state institutions had become home for over 200,000 people with disabilities (www.ed.gov). Basic necessities like food, clothing, and beds were not provided, nor were necessary services and rehabilitation. The individuals placed in these settings were being accommodated, rather than provided with the supports needed to function alongside their typically developing peers. Major changes would not take place until the 1970s, however, through disability advocacy. Lawsuits were filed in 1971 by the Pennsylvania Association for Retarded Children against the state of Pennsylvania, and in 1972 with the Mills vs. Board of Education of the District of Columbia in which they argued that all states were to provide access to free public education under the fourteenth amendment.