An attempt to ratify the U.N.-sponsored Convention on the Rights of People with Disabilities was defeated in the Senate on December 4.
The final vote was 61 to 38. A two-thirds majority was required for ratification.
Advocates for the rights of people with disabilities made a strong final push in the weeks before the vote, using phone calls and social media to urge senators to vote for the treaty.
The treaty outlines dozens of rights specific to the disability community, including the right to live in their own communities, with “access to a range of in-home, residential and other community support services.”
