During the three decades following World War II, the social sector, including associations, expanded powerfully in most Western countries. Toward the end of the 1950s, a socioeconomic and legislative context particularly favourable to new projects led to the creation of associations for parents, especially in the field of disabilities. In Switzerland, this new phenomenon coincided with the establishment of the federal invalidity insurance, which promotes the creation of new socioeducational and professional institutions for people with disability. One such institution is the Association for the Parents of Children with Cerebral Palsy (the future Cerebral Association), established on the national level and then in a number of cantons. At that time, little had been done in the field of major disability such as cerebral palsy, as it concerned a highly vulnerable population little known to the public. This article will present the lobbying work achieved by this Association in the public and private spheres in the canton of Geneva. It will also analyse the methods used by the Association, the networks it created and its accomplishments, emphasizing the characteristics of the influence which associations for disabled people have had on civil society.