Accessibility News International
Accessibility News International will strive to bring you as much information as possible from around the Globe regarding issues of accessibility for the Disability Community.
Social Inclusion for the Web
Posted under: Communications
Posted by Roger on February 8, 2010
We no longer think it is acceptable to discriminate against people on grounds of gender or race and, as a community, we expect provision to be made for
people with disabilities in public transport and building design. However, when it comes to making sure web content is accessible to all users of the web,
including people with disabilities, some designers, developers and clients just ‘don’t get it’, to borrow a phrase popular with the geekerati.
We like to rejoice in the notion that all ‘men are created equal with inalienable rights’, or ‘from each according to their ability, to each according to
their needs’, to take a more Marxist approach, however this hasn’t always been the case.
Social Inclusion for the Web- Full Article
Inclusion: More Than Mere Access
Posted under: Arts & Entertainment
By: John Rae
This Presentation was originally delivered at the Collections, Connections and Communities Conference, Ottawa, Ontario, October 2, 2009. It was revised for presentation at the University of Toronto, February 3, 2010.
For many persons with a disability – even a life long history and museum lover like me – the prospect of a visit to a museum, art gallery or heritage property can be a rather intimidating event. However, this need not be the case.
Inclusion: More Than Mere Access- Full Article
Hoping to See Change
Posted under: Community
Eastend resident Brenda Cooke involved with Alliance for Equality of Blind Canadians
PAUL MACNEIL
The Shaunavon Standard – February 2, 2010
Completing the most basic of daily tasks – whether it’s crossing the street in safety or placing a pot on a stove burner – can sometimes be a discouraging
and disabling challenge for hundreds of thousands of Canadians.
But that’s exactly the situation faced by citizens across the country who are vision-impaired and struggle to accomplish what many people would consider everyday routine.
Hoping to See Change- Full Article
Put ‘Handi’ Back in Our Handi-Transit
Posted under: Transportation
By Harry Wolbert
Last Updated: 2nd February 2010, 1:18pm
Transportation was the primary issue around which people with disabilities first organized back in the mid 1970s. This led to the eventual creation of a
Handi-Transit system in 1976.
Since then, much progress has been made. However, many barriers still exist with new ones being erected almost daily.
Put ‘Handi’ Back in Our Handi-Transit- Full Article
Access Remains Unequal: Disabled
Posted under: Built Environment
Homes, stores, sidewalks difficult to get to for many
Brad Bird, Oceanside Star
Published: Thursday, January 28, 2010
Oceanside streets, stores, parking areas and houses are failing many with wheelchairs, scooters and walkers, say members of a group seeking to improve accessibility.
They say homes of friends and family are often off-limits for lack of level entrances or accessible washrooms; most disabled parking spaces are too narrow for chair lifts; few curbs are lowered to allow access; doors at some malls can be difficult or impossible to open; and more store merchandise should be
accessible to people in wheelchairs.
Access Remains Unequal: Disabled- Full Article
Braille Illiteracy is a Growing Problem
Posted under: Communications
By Bill Glauber
of the Journal Sentinel
Posted: Feb. 2, 2010
Ronnay Howard is 9 years old and legally blind with cornrows in her hair and a smile on her face.
She sits in front of a keyboard in the resource room for the visually impaired at Engleburg Elementary School, her small hands moving methodically over six large keys.
Braille Illiteracy is a Growing Problem- Full Article
Badeyes Design & Consulting Partners with eSSENTIAL Accessibility™
Posted under: Communications, Community
By Geof Collis
Badeyes Design & Consulting
February 2, 2010
To further its commitment to web accessibility, Badeyes Design and Consulting has partnered with eSSENTIAL Accessibility™ in order to add another layer of accessibility to sites it designs.
With the Accessibility for Ontarians with Disabilities Act (AODA) now in force it makes even more sense to make websites as accessible as possible and eSSENTIAL Accessibility™ helps us do just that.
Read full article at
http://www.badeyes.com/?p=186
Employment Insurance Extension To Self-Employed Canadians Comes Into Effect
Posted under: Employment
Represents One Of The Most Significant Enhancements To The EI Program In A Decade
As of January 31, self-employed Canadians are able to register for the Employment Insurance (EI) program, which will extend to them maternity, parental, sickness and compassionate care benefits, collectively called special benefits.
Employment Insurance Extension To Self-Employed Canadians Comes Into Effect- Full Article
Handicap Parking Cheaters Tagged by iPhone APP
Posted under: Transportation
Friday, January 29, 2010
CBC news
The Parking Mobility iPhone app helps people report those who use handicap parking spots without a permit. (CBC)
A western Canadian non-profit company is making it easier to catch people who use handicap parking spots without a proper permit.
Handicap Parking Cheaters Tagged by iPhone APP- Full Article
A Misleading Public-Relations Blitz Seems Aimed at Creating a Monopoly
Posted under: Communications
CNIB serves fewer than 10 per cent of the people who need alternatives to standard print.
By Graeme McCreath, Special to Times Colonist
January 22, 2010
If you’re blind or have impaired vision or a physical or reading disability that makes print inaccessible to you, where do you go if you want to read a good book?
A Misleading Public-Relations Blitz Seems Aimed at Creating a Monopoly- Full Article
Dartmouth University Establishes New Student Disability Group to Talk About Campus Access
Posted under: Education
s320/dartmouth
From The Dartmouth:
Access By Leadership in Equity — a new student organization seeking to raise awareness about students with disabilities — has launched efforts to facilitate
greater campus dialogue about accessibility in its first weeks in existence, according to co-directors Emily Broas ’11 and Rebecca Gotlieb ’12.
ABLE’s goals include providing a peer-to-peer support network for students with disabilities, raising awareness about both visible and invisible disabilities, and improving College accommodations for these students by serving as a voice for the community.
Police Taken by Surprise as Visually Impaired Block Road
Posted under: Employment
The protesters, who were demanding govt jobs, relented only after an assurance from the CM
By Geeta Desai
Mumbai Mirror, January 26, 2010 at 11:03:45 AM
Visually-challenged protestors blocked the road outside BMC headquarters, in
front of Azad Maidan, for almost two hours on Monday, to press for their
demands of jobs in government and semi-government organisations.
Police Taken by Surprise as Visually Impaired Block Road- Full Article
Is Web Accessibility a Human Right?
Posted under: Communications
Date posted to site, January 28, 2010
The Web is now so tightly integrated into our society that it’s second nature to obtain employment, access education, do commerce, get information, get
entertainment and even build social relationships online. If the Web is now a permanent and integral part of our society, then is denying a group of people
access to much of the Web a form of discrimination and a denial of a human right?
Is Web Accessibility a Human Right?- Full Article
Sweeping Settlement Reached by the City of Oakland to Include People with Disabilities in Disaster Planning
Posted under: Community
January 21, 2010
OAKLAND, Calif. – In a sweeping settlement announced today by Disability Rights Advocates (DRA) and the City of Oakland, Oakland has agreed to adopt an emergency plan which incorporates the needs of people with all types of disabilities.
Service Dog Helps Woman Fight Mental Illness
Posted under: Mental
By Dalson Chen, The Windsor StarJanuary 23, 2010
Jennifer Francis has a disability and requires a service dog — but there’s nothing wrong with her sight, hearing or limbs.
Service Dog Helps Woman Fight Mental Illness- Full Article
Chihuahua Human Rights Case Dismissed
Posted under: Community
Last Updated: Friday, January 22, 2010 | 6:01 PM ET
Alex Allarie says his service dog, a chihuahua Dee-O-Gee, helps him cope with his anxiety and depression, a psychiatric disability. (CBC)A fight over a chihuahua described as a disabled man’s service dog has been dismissed by the Ontario Human Rights Tribunal.
Chihuahua Human Rights Case Dismissed- Full Article
McKeever 1st Paralympian to Compete in Winter Olympics
Posted under: Arts & Entertainment
Visually impaired cross-country skier’s dream comes true
Friday, January 22, 2010
By Lindsey Craig, CBC Sports
Visually impaired cross-country skier Brian McKeever is about to make history.
The 30-year-old Canmore, Alta., native has been named to Team Canada, becoming the first Paralympian to compete in a Winter Olympics.
McKeever 1st Paralympian to Compete in Winter Olympics- Full Article
Career Watch: The Disabled as IT Workers
Posted under: Employment
By: Jamie Eckle On: 21 Jan 2010 For: Computerworld
Neil Jacobson, the founder and CEO of Abilicorp discusses the fit between Information Technology (IT) and people with disabilities and it how it could potentially influence hiring decisions in enterprise environments
In what ways are people with disabilities superior employees?
Career Watch: The Disabled as IT Workers- Full Article
Student Failed Exam, but Reinstated on Basis of Extreme Anxiety, Professor Says; Clinical problem that can affect functioning
Posted under: Education
Friday, January 22nd, 2010 | 3:10 am
Canwest News Service
A University of Manitoba professor is alleging a doctoral candidate twice failed his comprehensive examination, then appealed to be reinstated on the basis that he suffers from the disability of extreme examination anxiety.
CNIB off Base in Bid for Government Cash
Posted under: Communications
By Dave Obee
Times ColonistJanuary 20, 2010
The CNIB — once known as the Canadian National Institute for the Blind — wants the B.C. government to hand over $624,000 because of what it calls inequities in library funding for Canadians.
It’s hard to say no to the CNIB, because the charity has a wonderful reputation. But let’s hope that the provincial government does its homework on this request.
The facts do not support the CNIB’s argument.
CNIB off Base in Bid for Government Cash- Full Article
