Read on Twitter
Thread: today is international disabled peoples day, #IDPD, and while all the talk around inclusion is nice, we need to start with meaningful change. Here are some suggestions.
We're trying to get through a global pandemic together and as a result, content is moving online. This was happening anyway, but the timeline has changed. We need to make sure this is accessible to disabled people, or we'll be left behind and experience even mor exclusion. #IDPD
It is really easy to start with social media. For blind users, access to image descriptions is so important. Think about all the information shared in images, healthcare info, events, and just funny memes. Imagine being excluded from all of it #IDPD
On most platforms, it's easy to add alt text image descriptions. On Twitter you can add these to photos and GIFs you post. A quick Google search will bring up instructions for other platforms. https://help.twitter.com/en/using-twitter/picture-descriptions #IDPD
If you're writing longer content on somewhere like Facebook, you can include the image description in the text itself. This may make it accessible to other disabled people who can benefit from descriptions but who don't use screen readers. #IDPD
Deaf users of social media need video and audio content to be captioned. Again, think of all that you share through video and imagine not being able to fully access it. Deafblind people need transcripts of the videos, because they may not be able to access captions. #IDPD
Transcripts also help those who struggle with audio processing, or anyone who does not find auditory learning effective. Human brains do not all work the same, and accounting for neurodiversity really matters #IDPD
So why this. Why am I talking about social media, rather than the "big issues" of access to healthcare, education and housing? Because information access is absolutely critical. #IDPD
I don't have access to any of those things if I don't have access to information. If you apply this advice to websites, documents and public health broadcasts do you see now just how critical this is? #IDPD
Deaf people have been excluded from Coronavirus public health broadcasts because there have been no sign interpreters present and videos are not captioned. #IDPD
Blind people have very little access to charts showing the progression of the disease, and info about preventing it is contained within infographics which have no text alternative. Deafblind people have access to neither videos nor the images and posters. #IDPD
Your words on inclusion are nice. But so long as you continue to deny us access to information it is all quite meaningless. Information access is a right. #IDPD
If you want to be an ally, don't take part in a ridiculous social media challenge that "raises awareness." People are already aware that we exist, they just don't care about accessibility. You can speak up for our right to access, and share our work. #IDPD
If a video isn't captioned and doesn't have a transcript, ask why not. Insist that it must. Use something like @ImageAltText or @get_altText to check whether an image has alt text, if not, insist that it is reuploaded. #IDPD
Ask yourself if you are sharing marginalised voices or speaking over them. If you say "disabled people want," or "disabled people feel," take a moment to think about whether you can share disabled people speaking directly instead of what you think we want and feel. #IDPD
We won't get any change unless we challenge the system. So be part of that. Yes, it's uncomfortable to tell someone that they are excluding people. But I can guarantee it isn't as uncomfortable as being excluded every single day and having no choice but to speak up. #IDPD
