Disability Friendly
Our class discussion on internet access and usability for people with disabilities really struck a cord for me, so-to-speak. My mother is a hypotherapist, meaning that she gives horse back riding lessons to people with disabilities as a form of therapy. Growing up in her non-profit program, I volunteered for hours on end. Though at the time I did not understand the value of working with people who have disabilities, those experiences have helped me to understand disabilities on a greater level then most Americans.
In general, people with disabilities, if they need help, will ask for it. All too often, people just assume they want it. The goal of a disability friendly web site should be to enable the viewer to use the web site without much trouble. However, a web site that aims to be as disability friendly as possible should also devote space and time to developing venues for feed back, testing, and immediate help response.
NOTE TO PONDER: Why are web sites not more disability friendly? Are companies and campaign liable if their web sites are not disability friendly?
2 Comments:
The liability question is interesting - I don't know the answer. But I think that people don't think much about people with disabilities, or think that they are so uninvolved in community life that they're not worth considering. Also, I think that they'd rather not think about people with disabilities. I'm also sensitized to the issue, since I have a disabled identical twin sister. But I sort of subconsciously keep it to myself in many social situations, since it's hard to explain, and many people don't want to have to think about it.
5:43 PM
The liability question might depend upon the entity. I think government sites run with taxpayer dollars should be held liable, but I'm not sure that private sites should. In theory, it would be nice if every site/blog developed was disability friendly. Unfortunately, I think most web designers / internet users are unwilling to go the extra step. And without a law or the use of taxpayer funds, I doubt you can require them to comply.
9:19 AM
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