Accessibility in the News — 6/17/2022.

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AITN Quote of the Week

“A father is neither an anchor to hold us back, nor a sail to take us there, but a guiding light whose love shows us the way.” ― Unknown

June Vpat For Vendors – Microassist

Navigating VPAT Requirements for Vendors

Feature Stories

All-terrain chairs make state parks more accessible in Minnesota

June 5, 2022 | Source: Senior Matters

Minnesota DNR announces new accessible recreation opportunities

June 13, 2022 | Source: KARE11 &Minnesota DNR

How one man is working to improve accessibility on ME trails

June 9, 2022 | Source: News Center Maine

Spending time in nature has been linked to numerous benefits, including improved attention, lower stress, better mood and a reduced risk of psychiatric disorders. However, individuals with mobility issues may struggle to spend meaningful time in nature. People confined to wheelchairs or who struggle to walk longer distances are often limited to only a few steps from a parking lot—anything but paved, flat trails seem all but impossible. But a new Minnesota Department of Natural Resources initiative is attempting to bridge that divide with the addition of five all-terrain track chairs free to use for park visitors…

National News (U.S.)

Medical students bring the Lion King to life for students who are blind and visually impaired

May 24, 2022 | Source: UT Health

Broadway shows arrive each season to entertain thousands of Austinites, but for people experiencing blindness or vision impairment, a musical or play may seem out of reach. But for 30 students at the Texas School for the Blind and Visually Impaired (TSBVI), the bright lights of Broadway have become a source of inspiration. And it was all due to one idea, the dogged determination of four medical students, and the collaboration of an incredible campus community…

Bone v. UNC Health as a Microcosm of the Greater Issue of Healthcare Information Systems and Electronic Health Records Accessibility

May 25, 2022 | Source: Josef Pevsner

In Bone v. University of North Carolina Health Care System, U.S. Dist. LEXIS 7937, 2022 WL 138644 (M.D.N.C. 2022), the plaintiffs, represented by the National Federation of the Blind, sued the University of North Carolina Health System due to insufficient access to their own medical bills and records. The January opinion from the United States District Court for the Middle District of North Carolina found that UNC had failed to meet the plaintiff’s communications accessibility needs…

Twitter – Microassist

Website Accessibility Plaintiff Loses After Federal Trial On Standing and Other Grounds

June 3, 2022 | Source: Pacific ADA Center & Court Decision

District Judge Dale Fisher of the Central District of California held, after a bench trial, that plaintiff Andres Gomez did not have standing to bring a website accessibility lawsuit under Title III of the ADA because he had not shown any consequences resulting from his encounter with the inaccessible website, nor a real intent to return to the website. The Court also dismissed Gomez’s California Unruh Act claim, finding that the law does not apply to persons who were not physically in California (Gomez was in Florida when he visited the website) when they experienced discrimination by a California-based business…

Pernod Ricard class action claims website inaccessible to visually impaired, blind

June 3, 2022 | Source: Top Class Actions

Ole Smoky Distillery class action alleges website not accessible to blind, visually impaired

June 3, 2022 | Source: Top Class Actions

Alcohol Suppliers Hit with ADA Website Accessibility Lawsuits

June 7, 2022 | Source: Alcohol Law Advisor

Accessibility class actions allege many major websites violate Americans with Disabilities Act

June 7, 2022 | Source: Top Class Actions

Dungarees class action claims website inaccessible to blind, visually impaired

June 8, 2022 | Source: Top Class Actions

Robles v. Domino’s Settles After Six Years of Litigation

June 10, 2022 | Source: Seyfarth Shaw

ADA class actions allege websites inaccessible to blind, visually impaired consumers

June 13, 2022 | Source: Top Class Actions

Nike Hit With South Florida Website Accessibility Suit

June 13, 2022 | Source: Law.com & Lawsuit

Special Olympics athletes demonstrate true meaning of competition

June 4, 2022 | Source: NBC Montana

Smiles filled Brick Breeden Fieldhouse over the weekend, as athletes from all over southwest Montana gathered for the Special Olympics. Some 150 athletes participated in the games, but they wouldn’t have had the chance if it weren’t for Kenny Hedrich and Allan Hopper — the duo founded the games in Bozeman and have been competing since the 1970s. “Since 1973, so for about 50 years,” said Hedrich. Over the course of that near 50-year span, Hedrich and Hopper worked to build up the Special Olympics in Bozeman to what it is today…

Lawmakers urge VA to provide more information about accessibility to its websites for individuals with disabilities

June 6, 2022 | Source: Stars and Stripes & Bradford Era

Casey Leads Bipartisan Letter Urging Veterans Affairs to Make Websites Accessible for People with Disabilities

June 7, 2022 | Source: Bob Casey

Ten lawmakers wrote a letter Monday to Department of Veterans Affairs Secretary Denis McDonough urging the agency to improve its websites to make them more accessible to people with disabilities. “This lack of compliance is a problem for the one-quarter of all veterans with a service-connected disability, as well as the 26% of the general public with a disability, including veterans, VA employees and people who might seek information from the department on behalf of a veteran,” the lawmakers wrote in the letter dated June 6…

First Fully Accessible Subway Station Opens in Brooklyn

June 8, 2022 | Source: BK Reader

The first fully accessible subway station that is compliant with the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) opened in Brooklyn last week, reports News 10. With the MTA being the city’s main source of efficient transportation, and with only about a quarter of MTA stations being fully accessible this project has taken priority. Now, that two elevators and a walkway overpass has opened at Livonia Avenue Station along the L line, riders can now access both platforms from the street via the structures…

U of R researchers make surveys more accessible for Deaf, DeafBlind

June 8, 2022 | Source: Rochester First

For decades, Deaf and DeafBlind populations say they have been overlooked and underserved by healthcare and health research. A group of researchers from the University of Rochester is trying to change that. The researchers, who work with the National Center for Deaf Health Research (NCDHR), have created a tool that makes surveys more accessible for all populations. The tool was created after research coordinators like Jenna Stewardson noticed there were limitations on some survey platforms, including the web-based application called REDCap…

Suit challenges Alabama’s denial of accessible absentee voting ballots to the blind and people with print disabilities

June 8, 2022 | Source: Southern Poverty Law Center

The SPLC and its co-counsel, Alabama Disabilities Advocacy Program (ADAP) and Brown Goldstein & Levy, filed a federal lawsuit today against the state of Alabama for denying voters who are blind or have print disabilities access to the state’s absentee ballot program in violation of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) and the Rehabilitation Act (RA). Filed on behalf of the National Federation of the Blind of Alabama (NFB-AL), the suit asserts that the state excludes blind and print-disabled Alabamians from absentee voting because it forces them to seek another person’s assistance in order to complete their ballots…

Selma Blair’s New Ability-Inclusive Beauty Products Have Changed My Entire Routine

June 9, 2022 | Source: Allure

As an above-elbow amputee who’s struggled to wrangle beauty products perhaps more than many other people, I find the pairing between Selma Blair and Guide Beauty to be as perfect as eyeshadow and shimmer. The ability-inclusive brand, which was founded by makeup artist Terri Bryant in 2020, will launch three new products made with Blair’s input, and I got to test them all before release. Since launching two years ago, Guide has paved the way for more people to gain independence and control over their makeup application — because at its best, beauty belongs to everyone…

Inside Brandon Winfield’s Quest To Make The World A More Accessible Place, One Rating And Review At A Time

June 9, 2022 | Source: Forbes

Most people are familiar with the Americans with Disabilities Act, at least tangentially. The landmark piece of legislation, enacted in 1990, is more or less the disability community’s equivalent to the Civil Rights Act. The bill was fathered by Tony Coelho, a former Democratic congressman from California. I interviewed him a couple years ago about his life and the bill’s origin story. Thanks to the ADA, as it’s colloquially known, people are aware of physical world accommodations for disabled people such as wheelchair ramps and parking spaces…

MBTA still has ‘much work to do’ to make system ADA accessible

June 10, 2022 | Source: Boston Herald & WCVB

It’s been 20 years since a group of riders filed a class-action lawsuit against the MBTA, seeking a more accessible transit system, but the terms of the 2006 settlement agreement remain as important as ever. “It’s hard to believe that the Daniels-Finegold v. MBTA case is 20 years old,” said lead plaintiff Joanne Daniels-Finegold. “As we stated in the settlement agreement, a safe, reliable and accessible trip should be and must be afforded to all passengers.”…

Accessible Parking Spots May Finally Be Coming To Sandwich Town Hall

June 10, 2022 | Source: The Enterprise Sandwich

Nearly 12 years have passed since major renovations were completed at Sandwich Town Hall, yet one facet of the design never came to fruition — two accessible parking spaces along Grove Street. “They got to put in a nice elevator system, they got to do the sidewalks, and yet there’s no place for someone confined to a wheelchair to park,” said Carl Johansen, a disabled veteran who has been advocating for accessible parking in town for years. Mr. Johansen said that the board of selectmen at the time failed in their due diligence when it came to making sure that the spaces were made available…

Van Hollen, Duckworth, Durbin Call on DOJ to Ensure Government Websites Comply with the ADA

June 10, 2022 | Source: Chris Van Hollen & Dick Durbin

Senators ask DOJ to enforce accessibility rules for state and local websites

June 13, 2022 | Source: State Scoop

U.S. Senator Chris Van Hollen (D-Md.) joined Senator Tammy Duckworth (D-Ill.) along with Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Dick Durbin (D-Ill.) in urging the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) to provide better guidance and regulations to help State and local governments better comply with the Americans with Disabilities Act’s (ADA) accessibility requirements on their websites, mobile applications and other forms of technology. In a letter sent to Attorney General Merrick Garland, the Senators wrote…

Walking, talking and rolling through Uptown Athens sidewalks

June 11, 2022 | Source: Athens Messenger

There was a time when Davey McNelly couldn’t go down Stimson Avenue in downtown Athens. “This is about where the sidewalk ended here,” he said at the intersection near Bella Vino. “This was a dead end, there was no way to continue.” McNelly, chairperson of the Athens City Commission on Disabilities, gave a tour of some of the ways the City of Athens had improved its accessibility and other areas that still need improvement as part of the third annual Walk, Talk and Roll event…

Alaska high court sides with state in ballot access case

June 11, 2022 | Source: The Journal & MSN

The Alaska Supreme Court has reversed a lower court decision that barred state elections officials from certifying the results of Saturday’s special U.S. House primary amid concerns about ballot accessibility for voters with visual impairments. The high court said Saturday that an explanation of its reasoning would follow at a later time. Attorneys for the state had asked the supreme court to reverse a Friday ruling from a Superior Court judge that they interpreted as preventing elections officials from concluding voting as scheduled Saturday…

Troubled Iowa center for disabled fined for resident’s death

June 11, 2022 | Source: KGAN

A troubled Iowa center for people with intellectual and developmental disabilities failed to monitor the fluid intake of a 30-year-old resident who died in February due to dehydration, state inspectors said in a report. The Iowa Department of Inspections and Appeals has fined the Glenwood Resource Center $10,000 after inspectors found that center staff failed to ensure that the man received at least 101 ounces (3,000 milliliters) of fluids every day, as ordered by his doctor…

How a lack of public transportation hurts us with disabilities

June 12, 2022 | Source: AZCentral

Living in Arizona as a wheelchair user can be summarized with one word: inaccessible. Without a pricey and wheelchair-accessible van, my only option is public transportation. The closest bus stop to my house is three-quarters of a mile away and rolling there leaves me exhausted. When the bus is late, or a shuttle isn’t available, I’m stranded in the Arizona heat until I can find a ride. I never thought much about public transportation until an accident left me paralyzed at age 18…

Wayland agrees to improve school’s accessibility to those with disabilities

June 13, 2022 | Source: Wicked Local MetroWest Daily

Wayland Public Schools has agreed to make infrastructure improvements to an elementary school to resolve allegations that the district discriminated against those with disabilities by operating a school that is not accessible. In November, the U.S. Department of Education’s Office of Civil Rights opened an investigation to examine the allegations, which were lodged by a parent. The complaint highlighted the front main entrance, the stair lift, the garden in the center of the building, the perimeter sidewalks, the blacktop surface used during recess, and the playground next to the field behind the school…

“It’s discrimination,” Oklahomans with disabilities say they’re ‘locked out’ of bathroom accessibility

June 14, 2022 | Source: KFOR

A group of Oklahomans is pushing to get universal changing tables in state restrooms, including at the State Capitol. On Monday, Audra Beasley, her son, Max, and State Representative Mickey Dollens attached a lock to a chain-link fence to symbolize people with disabilities not having equal access to public restrooms. “If you were to call any of our visitor stations and ask for restroom access for someone who’s outgrown the baby changing station, they will direct you to the floor and the restroom because that’s their only option,” said Audra Beasley…

Smithsonian’s Latino gallery makes big gains for accessibility

June 14, 2022 | Source: The Washington Post

The refugee boat is a gut punch. Tucked in an alcove of the Molina Family Latino Gallery, the homemade raft carried two Cuban refugees, known as balseros, who risked their lives in 1992 in a harrowing water escape from Cuba’s economic crisis. Picturing the makeshift vessel on the open ocean is emotional, and it forces viewers to confront the courage and desperation of thousands of refugees. The boat sits in front of footage of a roiling ocean, the sound of waves coming from a directional speaker overhead…

How Disabled Athlete Zion Clark Is Making Fitness More Accessible

June 14, 2022 | Source: Shape Magazine

If you haven’t “met” Zion Clark yet, get ready to be impressed: Clark is a multi-sport professional athlete who holds a Guinness World Record for the fastest 20-meter race on two hands and has his sights set on competing in both the Olympic and Paralympic Games. When Shape sat down with him over Zoom, it was clear that he exudes the easy confidence of someone who knows they’ve worked hard to become the best at what they do. Still, it’s been a long road to get to where he is now, and the 24-year-old has no plans of slowing down anytime soon, says Clark…

Why Universal Design is critical to CNU

June 15, 2022 | Source: Public Square: A CNU Journal

As a reporter, marketer, and planner, I have been involved with the Congress for New Urbanism since its founding. I started writing about urban design, growth, development and how cities work and fail in 1988, the same year I married a brilliant attorney and writer who has used a wheelchair for mobility since she started college in the early 1980s. The merger of what I work on and who I love should be perfect. The CNU advocates for so many things that make life better for people with disabilities…

How art helps these disabled creators find themselves

June 15, 2022 | Source: The Hill

The Kennedy Center in Washington, D.C., is showing off artwork from some of the most talented artists with disabilities in the U.S. as part of a national competition. For more than 20 years, the Kennedy Center’s VSA Emerging Young Artists Program has recognized and showcased the work of young disabled artists each year between the age of 16 and 25. Professionals in the field, including curators at national art museums like the National Gallery of Art, review submissions from all across the country and ultimately select 15 who share a total of $60,000 in awards, with a grand prize of $20,000…

Jack Fact — According to Statista, by 2020, the median age of the global workforce is expected to be 39 years, up from 33.8 years in 1990. Additionally, it is projected that there will be over three million people worldwide aged 100 years and over by 2050.

Hit The Road Jack — Accessible Hawaii: the best things to do for travelers with disabilities and additional needs & Majorca to host fam trips to showcase accessibility initiatives

International News

Hopes that new accessibility icon a sign of the times

June 3, 2022 | Source: Winnipeg Free Press- Canada

A Springfield Collegiate Institute teacher organized an unusual field trip to the Oakbank school’s parking lot. Just after lunch, a group of about 25 students and educators, some of whom travelled from Winnipeg’s Fort Richmond Collegiate, gathered around a single parking space to watch a custodian install a new sign. As the metal marker was screwed into place, the group cheered, celebrating the small but significant step in updating accessibility signage on public school grounds in Manitoba…

DGCA issues draft accessibility rules for disabled flyers

June 3, 2022 | Source: Telegraph India

Ministry seeks public feedback on draft national policy on disability

June 13, 2022 | Source: The Hindu- India

Accessibility still remains elusive for persons with disabilities

June 14, 2022 | Source: The Hindu- India

The draft rules issued by the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) on Friday said if an airline felt a specially abled passenger’s health was likely to deteriorate during a flight, it must consult a doctor at the airport and take an “appropriate call” on whether boarding should be denied to the flyer or not. The proposal to issue new rules comes just six days after the aviation regulator said it had imposed a fine of Rs 5 lakh on IndiGo for denying boarding to a specially abled child at Ranchi airport on May 7…

Uncertainty over Accessible India Campaign deadline

June 4, 2022 | Source: The Hindu- India

With its deadline of June 2022 almost up, the status of targets under the Accessible India Campaign (AIC) was likely to be discussed during a meeting of the Central Advisory Board on Disability later this month, according to Social Justice and Empowerment Ministry sources. A board was likely to assess the progress made by States so far and the possibility of an extension, an official of the Department of Empowerment of Persons with Disabilities (DEPwD) said. Another official said the meeting of the board was scheduled for June 24…

Bersih 2.0: OKU need greater accessibility to be part of Malaysia’s democracy

June 4, 2022 | Source: Malay Mail- Malaysia

Accessibility for persons with disabilities (OKU) must be improved to let members of the community make informed choices in elections, electoral watchdog Bersih 2.0 said at a forum today. Bersih 2.0 acting executive director Ngeow Chow Ying said not enough political parties and media not provide accessibility features such as “easy reading” documents catering to OKU, sign language interpreters, and other platforms for the group to obtain critical information to guide their voting…

Legislative Assembly committee launches inquiry into accessibility of Auslan services

June 4, 2022 | Source: The Canberra Times- Australia

A Legislative Assembly standing committee has launched an inquiry into the disadvantage and discrimination faced by deaf and hard of hearing people due to a scarcity of services and information in Auslan. DeafACT last year called on the government for the inquiry in an e-Petition which reached over 536 and was referred to the standing committee on education and community inclusion. The tripartisan committee will consider the disadvantage and discrimination faced by Deaf people due to lack of access to services and information in Auslan and consider options to strengthen laws and policy…

Street Sweeps & Disability Justice

June 4, 2022 | Source: Pivot Legal Society- Canada

This year’s blog features an interview with Gabrielle Peters. Gabrielle is a disabled writer and policy analyst and a commissioner on the Vancouver City Planning Commission. She is co-founder of Dignity Denied and the Disability Filibuster. Gabrielle’s work often focuses on further developing the radical theory of accessibility by integrating the lessons of disability justice, harm reduction, trauma-informed practice and grassroots community development and transformative change activism…

‘We are not welcome’: wheelchair users demand space on Montreal’s pedestrian streets

June 6, 2022 | Source: CBC- Canada

Linda Gauthier lives just a few blocks away from Mont-Royal Avenue. The street, one of 10 becoming fully pedestrian this summer, sees restaurants spilling out onto terrasses and the pavement crowded with colourful sidewalk sales. But Gauthier said she can’t take advantage of any of it — not on Mont-Royal, or in any of Montreal’s pedestrian zones — because she uses a wheelchair. “[People with limited mobility] would like to enjoy them as well, but we hate it, because of the frustration every time you go on one of the streets,” Gauthier said…

Wolastoqew carpentry training program retrofits toys for N.S. kids with disabilities

June 5, 2022 | Source: CBC- Canada

This week, Wolastoqew carpenters-in-training in New Brunswick began retrofitting 52 toys for kids with disabilities at the IWK Health Centre in Halifax. The trainees are adding external accessible sensors to the toys so people with mobility issues can still have fun. The retrofitting includes rewiring and soldering items like the yellow Boppin’ Beaver to include an external padded switch that triggers the toy’s animation and sound. Ethan Paul, one of the trainees, says they’re happy to help….

Semaine québécoise des personnes handicapées : An STM transit network for all

June 7, 2022 | Source: Mass Transit- Canada

RTC Quebec to make 1,000 tram stops accessible by 2028

June 8, 2022 | Source: Intelligent Transport- Canada

For the Semaine québécoise des personnes handicapées (Québec Week of the Disabled), the Société de transport de Montréal (STM) is holding an awareness day to promote the inclusion of people with functional limitations in public transit. “The STM has a wide range of infrastructure and equipment in place and is rolling out tools to improve universal accessibility in its bus and métro networks, as well as to promote their use by customers with functional limitations to meet all their travel needs,” said Laurence Parent, vice-chair of the STM Board of Directors…

McDonald’s and RightHear expand their partnership to make fast food more accessible

June 8, 2022 | Source: Fast Compan- Israel

There are some 200,000 blind people in Israel. Though those citizens must navigate an at times difficult post-pandemic world (as is this case with visually impaired people everywhere), there’s at least one place—albeit an unlikely one—where conditions have actually improved since the start of the pandemic: McDonald’s, the largest chain restaurant in the country. Earlier this month, the fast food behemoth announced an extended partnership with RightHear, an Israel-based startup that makes tech for visually impaired and blind people…

Major project makes Via Dolorosa in Jerusalem’s Old City accessible to all

June 8, 2022 | Source: Catholic News Service- Israel

After 10 years of systematic work, the Old City of Jerusalem is more accessible to the disabled and the elderly. The pandemic-related shutdown allowed for completion of work of the last, most sensitive mile of the historic stone alleyways of the Via Dolorosa — the Way of the Cross. It took years for the first 2.5 miles of the $6.5 million Accessible Jerusalem-Old City project to be complete because of the complexity of working within a historic area that is less than a half square mile in size…

Hamilton’s Mohawk College faces backlash for suspension of Accessible Media Production program

June 8, 2022 | Source: Insauga- Canada & CBC

Due to low enrollment numbers, Hamilton’s Mohawk College made the decision to suspend its Accessible Media Production (AMP) program for Fall 2022. The decision was a business one that has been met with backlash from the accessible media community and advocates, who are calling the decision foolish, troubling, and surprising. hrough the college’s official Twitter account, Mohawk says “It was a very difficult decision as we strongly believe in the concept of this program…

Lack of inclusivity, accessibility hits disabled’s wallet hard

June 8, 2022 | Source: DT Next- India

R Sathish Kumar (33), who works at a public sector bank in Medavakkam, spends close to Rs 10,000 per month for commuting to his office and for other disability-related works in the city. “I can reduce the cost to Rs 1,500 per month if public transportation becomes more inclusive for persons with disability,” he says. Currently, Metro stations and local stations in the city are not disabled-friendly. In Metro stations, the horizontal and vertical gap makes it necessary for persons with disabilities (PwD) to take help from others despite using a powered wheelchair, claim activists…

New program makes ‘life-changing’ cochlear implants more accessible to Manitoba adults

June 9, 2022 | Source: CBC- Canada

Adults in Manitoba with profound hearing loss will now be able to get most of the cost of their cochlear implant processor replacements covered by the province, Health Minister Audrey Gordon said at a news conference Thursday. The new adult program will be the same as the existing pediatric one, which covers 80 per cent of the cost of an external sound processor replacement every five years, Gordon said. “Expanding coverage of this program will ensure more Manitobans will be able to enjoy the benefits of good hearing and participate fully in life with their families and communities,” she said…

You want an accessible Canada? Put the people first

June 10, 2022 | Source: Canada’s National Observer- Canada

There remains a major problem with accessibility in Canada. It is still largely thought of in terms of situations, rather than people. The result is that many people with disabilities are unable to benefit from the changes supposedly being made on their behalf. Making Canada more accessible benefits everyone, and to achieve this, we must put people first. Accessibility is trendy in Canada. It has become a buzzword to drop in political speeches, is one of the leading topics in community design, and no discussion of Canadians values is complete without mentioning it…

Schools now legally obliged to make their websites more accessible. Here’s why it matters

June 11, 2022 | Source: The Irish Times- Ireland

The Web Accessibility Directive (Directive (EU) 2016/2102) has been in force since December 2016 and provides people with disabilities with better access to websites and mobile apps of public services. This directive was transposed into Irish law in September 2020. Public bodies in Ireland must ensure their websites and mobile apps are accessible to all people, including people with disabilities. (The full name of the 2020 Regulations is “S.I. No. 358/2020 — European Union (Accessibility of websites and Mobile Applications of Public Sector Bodies) Regulations 2020″.)…

Taxi shortage causing stress and frustration for wheelchair users

June 11, 2022 | Source: BBC- Ireland

Most people will have had the stressful experience of not being able to get a taxi home after a night out. But for wheelchair users, the inability to get a taxi can mean missing a hospital appointment or a social event. Film-maker Chris Lynch has been in a wheelchair from the age of six. He is not a regular user of wheelchair-accessible taxis but this is not through choice, he said, but because there is not enough of them. “I can’t plan ahead, particularly at night,” he said. “The glider (bus) is my only option and I have just excluded taxis from my planning altogether…

The fight for accessible playgrounds

June 11, 2022 | Source: Sky News- UK (Video)

Disabled children do not feel safe in playgrounds, according to the equality charity Scope, which says they are being denied fun, friendship and development opportunities. Research by the charity shows one in 10 parents of disabled children said they did not feel their child was safe using inaccessible equipment and the same number said their disabled child had hurt themselves using it…

IIT to ISRO to UPSC: Scientist With Disability Aces CSE, Aims to Make India Accessible

June 11, 2022 | Source: The Better India

For Roorkee resident and ISRO scientist Kartik Kansal, backlash and neglect are not new. He was 8 years old when he was diagnosed with muscular dystrophy, a disorder that progressively stops the functioning of the limbs. Attempts were made to diminish its progression, but Kartik ended up in a wheelchair soon. But nothing could bring down his spirits, and he eventually enrolled in the Indian Institute of Technology (IIT), Roorkee. After graduating in 2018, he cleared several competitive examinations like the Graduate Aptitude Test in Engineering (GATE) and Union Public Commission Engineering Services (IES)…

A disabled woman was stranded on a plane for a ‘demeaning’ 95 minutes after staff meant to help her off the flight were a no-show

June 11, 2022 | Source: Business Insider- England

A wheelchair user was stranded on a plane for 95 minutes after airport staff failed to come and assist her off the flight. Victoria Brignell, 45, landed at Gatwick airport on her British Airways flight from Malta on June 4. Being paralyzed from the neck down, Brignell uses a wheelchair and was aware there would be a short wait to get off the flight. However, the staff at Gatwick airport, near London, never arrived to get her off the plane. Brignell explained to Insider that when a plane lands, she needs to be lifted from her plane seat into an aisle chair…

Left behind: the fight for accessible public transport in Victoria

June 12, 2022 | Source: The Guardian- Australia

Google Maps tells Akii Ngo it will take 22 minutes to walk to the nearest metropolitan train station. But Ngo knows it will take at least 15 minutes longer than that. “As a wheelchair user, you can’t step over things, like the kerb. You have to find all of the accessible components of a path,” Ngo says. Not all paths near Ngo’s home in Melbourne’s western suburbs are created equal: many don’t have graded kerbs, which means wheelchair users have to find suitably sloped driveways to cross roads – or even travel on the road itself. “Which is dangerous,” Ngo says. “You’re literally riding your wheelchair into oncoming traffic.”…

Blind Canadians say new rules to put sound on EVs don’t go far enough

June 13, 2022 | Source: CBC- Canada

Some blind Canadians say Transport Canada’s proposed requirement that electric vehicles (EVs) emit pedestrian warning noise is a good start — but they think the sound should be standardized. Unlike the U.S. and Europe, Canada doesn’t currently require electric vehicles and their quieter motors to generate sound when travelling at low speeds. In April 2021, Transport Canada proposed a requirement that all hybrid and electric cars have sound emitters when travelling at low speeds. This regulation is scheduled to take effect in 2023, but allows manufacturers to pick their own sounds…

Consider these accessibility features to welcome every body to your cottage

June 14, 2022 | Source: Cottage Life- Canada

When we consider accessibility for those of us growing older or who live with a disability, cottages don’t exactly leap to mind. They’re usually situated on rock or sand, neither lending themselves to stable footing. They feature decks and docks, which sometimes means navigating stairs or steep grades. Cottage floors might bear the dips and divets of generations of feet. For indoor visibility, we rely on lamps. Outside at night, we rely on moonlight. When my 92-year-old father fell four years ago, the hospital asked whether it was safe for him to return home…

Montreal woman calls out hotel accessibility after ‘devastating’ experience

June 15, 2022 | Source: CTV News – Canada

Alberta woman calls accessible rental situation in the province ‘dehumanizing’

June 14, 2022 | Source: Global News- Canada

Denied a cab because of her service dog, this disability advocate is pointing to a larger problem

June 16, 2022 | Source: CBC- Canada

A Montreal woman is speaking out after she says her convocation was nearly ruined because of the lack of accessibility at a downtown hotel. There’s nothing Chantal De Luca, 21, wanted more than to have her parents come to Montreal for her convocation at McGill University late last month, but as soon as they arrived in town for her special day, she was in tears. Her father, 72, has used a wheelchair since 2016 after having a stroke, so in the months before the five-day trip, De Luca said her mother had called various Montreal hotels asking if they had an accessible room, including a wheelchair-accessible shower…

Accessibility and technology at heart of new strategy

June 15, 2022 | Source: Independent- Ireland

An extensive document with over 100 pages, the Age Friendly Strategy 2022-26 was compiled following an extensive survey of 900 older people across the county and comes with a set of recommendations to ensure Wexford remains a great place to go old. Compiled by Age Friendly Wexford and Wexford County Council (WCC), the first set of recommendations focus on outdoor spaces and buildings. Improving accessibility to towns across the county is a primary objective and the strategy sets out a list of ways in which it intends to achieve this goal…

As patio season ramps up, CaféTO’s accessibility problem comes under fire

June 15, 2022 | Source: Toronto.com- Canada

Patios have started springing up along the city’s bustling streets since the May long weekend, marking the beginning of the third season of CaféTO, Toronto’s popular pandemic-inspired outdoor dining program. But disability advocate Luke Anderson has noticed a marked difference this year: many of the installations aren’t accessible. “It makes me sad,” said Anderson, who is executive director of StopGap Foundation which provides one-step ramps to businesses. “Patio season is coveted and it is our human right as Canadians to be able to access space on an equal basis.”…

Disability rights activists fight for access to cities’ Pride events

June 16, 2022 | Source: POLITICO- Europe

Cobblestones, steep inclines, gravel — for members of the LGBTQ+ community with disabilities, seemingly small obstacles on the route a Pride march takes through a city can mean they are left out and forced to watch from the sidelines. That’s something Pride march organizers are only slowly starting to address. “Pride is the main event of the year for queer people,” said Ingrid Thunem, a paralympic swimmer and activist who leads the Norwegian Association of Youth with Disabilities…

PRH to work with Inklusion organisers on literature event accessibility guide

June 16, 2022 | Source: The Bookseller- UK

A guide to making literature events more accessible has reached its second funding goal following support from the industry and organisers will now work on the project with Penguin Random House UK. The Inklusion Guide was conceived by disabled writers Julie Farrell and Ever Dundas after they became frustrated by “the litany of excuses” about why literature events couldn’t be made accessible. They hope the easy-to-use, best-practice guide for event organisers and individuals will help ensure consistent and reliable access in the industry for book launches, festival events, conferences, panels, workshops, fellowships and residencies…

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