The Ultimate List of U.S. and International Disability Awareness Days
Disability awareness days, weeks, and months have been initiated by various governments and organizations to raise awareness about conditions that affect the lives of children and adults worldwide. If you or a loved one has a disability, these dates provide a terrific opportunity for participating in fundraising events and teaching others about these conditions.
Please note: To keep the list succinct, we've selected the most well-known disability-related dates that are relevant internationally and in the United States. If you have a disabling condition that you don't see here, let us know so that we can add the relevant awareness day, week, or month to the list!
January
January is:
National Birth Defect Awareness Month
National Glaucoma Awareness Month
Healthy Weight Awareness Month
Awareness Days in January
January 4 - World Braille Day (International)
January 11 - Paget's Disease Awareness Day
January 24 - Moebius Syndrome Awareness Day
January 30 - Chronic Traumatic Encephalopathy (CTE) Awareness Day
Last Sunday in January - World Leprosy Day (International)
February
February is:
Low Vision Awareness Month
Awareness Weeks in February
1st week of February - Tinnitus Awareness Week
February 7-14 - Congenital Heart Defects Awareness Week
Awareness Days in February
February 2 - Rheumatoid Arthritis Day (this is a great day to give a loved one of our recommended gifts for people with arthritis)
2nd Monday in February - International Epilepsy Day
February 14 - Congenital Heart Defect Awareness Day
February 15 - International Angelman Syndrome Day
February 22 - World Encephalitis Day
February 27 - Anosmia Awareness Day
February 28 (29th in a leap year) - Rare Disease Day
March
March is:
National Brain Injury Awareness Month
National Cerebral Palsy Awareness Month
National Deep Vein Thrombosis (DVT) Awareness Month
National Developmental Disabilities Awareness Month
National Essential Tremor Awareness Month
National Multiple Sclerosis Awareness Month
National Trisomy Awareness Month
Awareness Weeks in March
2nd week of March - World Glaucoma Week
Awareness Days in March
March 1 - Disability Community Day of Mourning
March 1 - International Wheelchair Day
March 3 - World Hearing Day
March 4 - National Brain injury Awareness Day
March 12 - World Glaucoma Day
March 21 - World Down Syndrome Day
March 25 - National Cerebral Palsy Awareness Day
March 26 - Purple Day for Epilepsy
April
April is:
Autism Awareness Month
Limb Loss and Limb Difference Awareness Month
Paralyzed Veterans Across America Month
Parkinson's Awareness Month
Sarcoidosis Awareness Month
Awareness Days in April
April 2 - World Autism Awareness Day
April 6 - Bohring-Opitz Syndrome Awareness Day
April 7- World Health Day
April 11 - World Parkinson's Disease Day
April 13 - Functional Neurological Disorder (FND) Awareness Day
April 19 - Global Porphyria Day
April 29 - World Wish Day
Every last Wednesday of April - International Guide Dog Day
May
May is:
ALS Awareness Month
Better Hearing and Speech Month
Cystic Fibrosis Awareness Month
Ehlers-Danlos Awareness Month
Fibromyalgia Awareness Month
Huntington's Disease Awareness Month
Lupus Awareness Month
Lyme Disease Awareness Month
Mobility Awareness Month
Myositis Awareness Month
National Asthma and Allergy Awareness Month
Older Americans Month
Prader-Willi Syndrome Awareness Month
Williams Syndrome Awareness Month
Awareness Weeks in May
1st full week of May - Deaf Awareness Week
A full week in May - International Face Equality Week
Awareness Dates in May
May 5 - International 5p Syndrome Awareness Day
May 6 - International Day for Osteogenesis Imperfecta
May 12 - International Awareness Day for Chronic Immunological and Neurological Diseases (CIND)
3rd Thursday in May - Global Accessibility Awareness Day
May 20 - World Autoimmune Arthritis Day
May 30 - World Multiple Sclerosis Day
June
June is:
Aphasia Awareness Month
Alzheimer's and Brain Awareness Month
Hemiplegic Migraine Awareness Month
Audiobook Appreciation Month (audiobooks are a vital accessibility resource!)
Awareness Weeks in June
3rd week of June - Learning Disability Week
Last week of June - Helen Keller Deafblind Awareness Week
Awareness Days in June
June 13 - International Albinism Awareness Day
June 17 - CDKL5 Awareness Day
June 18 - Autistic Pride Day
June 21 - Global Day of Recognition of ALS/MND
July
July is:
Disability Pride Month
National Cleft and Craniofacial Awareness and Prevention Month
National Fragile X Syndrome Awareness Month
National Juvenile Arthritis Awareness Month
Awareness Weeks in July
2nd week of July - National Therapeutic Recreation Week
Awareness Days in July
Various dates - Disability Pride Parades (state-based), which celebrate disability as a cultural and social identity and bring attention to the rights of people with disabilities
July 22 - National Fragile X Syndrome Awareness Day
July 26 - American Disabilities Act Anniversary
August
August is:
Spinal Muscular Atrophy Awareness Month
Awareness Days in August
August 21 - National Senior Citizens Day
September
September is:
Craniofacial Awareness Month
International Orthostatic Tremor Awareness Month
National Guide Dog Month
National Pain Awareness Month
National Spinal Cord Injury Awareness Month
World Alzheimer's Disease Month
Awareness Weeks in September
Last week of September - International Week of the Deaf
Awareness Days in September
September 9 - International Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder Awareness (FASD) Day
September 18 - National HIV/AIDS and Aging Awareness Day
3rd Saturday in September - Usher Syndrome Awareness Day
September 21 - World Alzheimer's Day
September 25 - International Ataxia Awareness Day
September 30 - Limb Girdle Muscular Dystrophy Awareness Day
October
October is:
ADHD Awareness Month
Down Syndrome Awareness Month
Dwarfism Awareness Month
Dyslexia Awareness Month
Learning Disability Awareness Month
National Disability Employment Awareness Month
National Disability History Month
National Special Needs Law Month
Selective Mutism Awareness Month
Spina Bifida Awareness Month
Awareness Weeks in October
Begins first Monday of October - Dyslexia Awareness Week
2nd full week of October - Dyspraxia Awareness Week
3rd full week of October - Invisible Disabilities Week
Awareness Days in October
October 5 - American Veterans Disabled for Life Awareness Day
October 5 - World Meningitis Day
October 6 - World Cerebral Palsy Awareness Day
The Thursday during Dyslexia Awareness Week- World Dyslexia Awareness Day
October 7 - International Trigeminal Neuralgia Awareness Day
2nd Thursday of October - World Sight Day
October 15 - Blind Americans Equality Day/White Cane Awareness Day
October 20 - World Osteoporosis Day
3rd Wednesday of October - Disability Mentoring Day
October 22 - International Stuttering Awareness Day
October 29 - World Stroke Day
November
November is:
22q Awareness Month
Epilepsy Awareness Month
Awareness Days in November
November 8 - Aicardi Syndrome Awareness Day
November 11 - Veterans Day
First Tuesday after Thanksgiving - Giving Tuesday
December
December is:
HIV/AIDS Awareness Month
Awareness Days in December
December 1 - World AIDS Day
December 3 - International Day of Persons with Disabilities
Action Ideas for Marking Awareness Dates
Because there are so many awareness events each year, many people focus on a disability or health condition that affects them personally or that affects someone in their family or network. After choosing one or two dates, think about an action that would be accessible and meaningful for you to do on that day.
Donate a mobility device such as a cane, rollator, mobility scooter, or wheelchair to a charitable organization. You can also donate a used wheelchair lift and many of the other types of accessibility equipment that we sell at our Denver, CO showroom.
Attend a fundraising event, host a fundraising event, or make a charitable donation to a nonprofit that funds research about the condition or helps people who are living with the condition.
Wear a T-shirt, put a bumper sticker on your vehicle, or share a post on social media to help raise awareness about the condition in the community.
Check out our post about top disability awareness activities if you need ideas for your workplace.
Disability Awareness Days Really Can Make a Difference
Whether you celebrate one awareness day or all of them (if you do, please let us know so that we can write an article about you!), it's encouraging to know that awareness events really do make a difference.
The funds raised on awareness days help to further research into prevention and treatments.
Donations of durable medical equipment improve the lives of people who live with disabilities.
Increased awareness helps employers, educators, and lawmakers understand the need to make allowances for people with rare or invisible disabilities.
Most important of all, awareness events and dates help people with various disabilities feel acknowledged and valued. And sometimes, simply feeling acknowledged and valued makes the biggest difference of all.