ON a special Sunday morning like this one, allow me to share this inspiring story of my brother and friend Richard H Bernstein.
Bernstein was born blind on November 9, 1973 and is an American lawyer, practising at The Law Offices of Sam Bernstein, located in Farmington Hills, Michigan.
He also is an adjunct professor at the University of Michigan and served on the Wayne State University Board of Governors for one eight-year term, including two years as vice-chair and two more as chair, until deciding not to seek re-election in 2010 for a second term beginning in 2011. Bernstein has been classified as legally blind since birth, as a result of retinitis pigmentosa.
Educational Background Bernstein attended Andover High School in the Bloomfield Hills School District of Bloomfield Hills, Michigan. In 1996, he received his Bachelor of Arts summa cum laude from the Centre for Disability, where he was president of  the students’ union at the College of Literature, Science and Arts.
For the ability to enter North-western University School of Law, Bernstein fought the Law School Admissions Council against the ‘visual
bias’ of the Law School Admission Test (LSAT), claiming the test discriminated against the blind because of its requirements for interpreting visual material.
He argued the test was no barometer of success in law school. Four universities agreed: North-western University, the University of Virginia, the University of Wisconsin and Vanderbilt University.
At the time he was admitted, he was the only blind person in the Law School.
The most amazing of his life is that to complete his studies, Bernstein was not taking teaching notes but memorising lectures, teaching and continued to read to memorise for a number of days before tests or examinations.
For tests, he memorised test questions and entire fact patterns focusing on the basis for the questions, some of which would be as long as five pages.
The fact patterns would be repeatedly read to him until he committed the entire question to memory and could then provide an answer.
He reportedly worked seven days a week for 13 hours each day to prove that disability is not inability in life and in 1999 he received his
juris doctorate degree from North-western University School of Law.
Before establishing his law firm Richard H. Bernstein, a civil rights lawyer was appointed the head of the public services division at The
Sam Bernstein Law Firm, PLLC in Farmington Hills, Michigan.
Bernstein strongly believe that luck of sight is not luck of vision and through his hard work competing with able boded he has achieved so much that currently he is an adjunct professor at the University of Michigan where I teach a course on Social Justice.
His vision is to help to change people’s perceptions toward the disabled people in the federal litigation with the city of New York after getting hit by a bicycle in Central Park in August 2012 that resulted in a 10 week hospital stay at Mt Sinai.
His other goal is to make Central Park safer for others by requiring the City to follow minimal federal requirements set forth by the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA). Unfortunately, the administration of NYC has shown a complete indifference to this request and refuses to engage in any discussions for a possible resolution.
It is my immediate plan to take lawsuit but not for NOT MONEY from the City and to ensure this is meant to push for service delivery he will pay for all the costs of the litigation out of his own pocket so as not to burden New York taxpayers. New York’s failure to follow the Americans with Disabilities Act is placing those who visit Central Park at risk. My hope is that Redditers can help us to make this situation better.
Bernstein joined the Law Offices of Sam Bernstein after graduating from Northwestern University School of Law. He is licensed to practice law in the states of Michigan and New York.
Much of Bernstein’s legal work has focused on protecting the rights of people with disabilities, which is done pro bono.
He successfully represented disabled Detroit residents in 2004 in an action against the City of Detroit to fix wheelchair lifts on buses as required by
federal legislation.
He also represented the Paralysed Veterans of America in 2007 in an action against the University of Michigan for failing to include adequate accommodations for spectators with disabilities when planning renovations for the stadium.
The suit resulted in increased seating for people with disabilities and their companions and enhanced accessible parking, restrooms and concessions. Also in 2007, Bernstein filed a lawsuit on behalf of people with disabilities, asserting that Oakland County, Michigan violated the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 because its road construction plans did not include mechanisms for people with visual impairments, people in wheelchairs and others with disabilities to safely cross the street at roundabouts.
The County eventually agreed to install special safety equipment so that pedestrians, with or without disabilities, can activate traffic signals to stop traffic and get visual and audio confirmation that vehicles actually stopped, before crossing roundabout intersections.
Detroit Department of Transportation (filed August 2004) Suit filed against the City of Detroit on behalf of five disabled Detroit residents, claiming that half of the city’s buses lacked working wheelchair lifts as required by Federal Law.
The plaintiffs stated that they were forced to wait in inclement weather for long periods as a result of this violation Amidst a very public battle in the local media where then – Mayor Kwame Kilpatrick “publicly disparaged Bernstein on radio, the US Department of Justice later intervened in the case, forcing the city and Kilpatrick to settle the Federal lawsuit.
The agreement, ordered by the US Department of Justice on November 4, 2005 required the city to test the wheelchair lifts of its buses
daily, improve the training of its drivers and mechanics and subject its buses to surprise evaluations regularly to ensure disabled patrons have access to public transportation.
The City of Detroit Department of Transportation is under the supervision of the United States Department of Justice.
University of Michigan – Michigan Stadium (filed April 2007) As a disability human rights activist  he filed a suit on behalf of the Michigan Paralyzed Veterans of America against University of Michigan – Michigan Stadium claiming that Michigan Stadium violated the Americans with Disabilities Act in its US$226 million renovation by failing to add enough seats for disabled fans or accommodate the needs for disabled restrooms, concessions and parking.
The US Department of Justice assisted in the suit, which was settled in March 2008. The consent decree, signed by US District Court Judge Sean Cox required the stadium to add 329 wheelchair seats throughout the stadium by 2010, and an additional 135 accessible seats in clubhouses to go along with the existing 88 wheelchair seats.
The school also enhanced the wheelchair accessibility of parking, access routes, restrooms, concessions and other amenities, and for disabled journalists, even the player locker rooms and coaches’ offices.
After the expansion was completed, the stadium accommodates 109,901, allowing the stadium to retain its designation as the largest in the USA.
Next week will look at Bernstein National and International awards received because of his work and strong belief that lucky of
sight should not limit him and challenge any disabled to do more.
(The author is Africa Disability policy analyst for SADC and inclusive development advisor for Centre for Disability Development Research,
Law and Policy, Johannesburg.
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