The COVID-19 pandemic is intensifying inequalities experienced by the world’s one billion people with disabilities, UN Secretary-General António Guterres said in launching a report issued on Wednesday that calls for a disability-inclusive recovery and response to the crisis.
Whether it’s been the bushfires, the floods, the disability royal commission or the COVID-19 pandemic, they have been there, beside our leaders at every press conference. Auslan interpreters have been in high demand this year as they convey critical and life-saving information to the deaf and hard of hearing community.
The answer to these and similar questions of equal access and fundamental rights of disabled people must be yes. Yes, it is always appropriate for disabled people to advocate for our rights, for full accommodation and inclusion, no matter what else is happening.
As universities around the world go online and many workers shift from cubicles to dining tables, some people with disabilities are left wondering if ableism was the only thing standing in their way of previously being granted such accessibility.
So, why is it still so hard to find good workplaces that are inclusive where disabled people feel comfortable and stay for the long haul? Why have the statistics on disability employment stagnated for decades, or gone backwards?
This campaign is calling for people with disability who are not eligible for the NDIS to stop falling through the cracks. These people should have equitable access to the assistive technology they need to lead full and active lives. Assistive technology benefits us and our communities. It allows us to stay involved in public life, stay working if we want to, remain in our homes, and look after ourselves. We are asking the Australian Government to establish a single National Assistive Technology Program for all people who are not eligible for the NDIS, both younger and older.
There are concerns the disability sector is being left behind in the national coronavirus response. Disability was absent from Prime Minister Scott Morrison’s public health announcement last week and a webinar for home and community aged care providers held on Friday heard there had been “no specific” conversations regarding the sector.
Service providers are warning that 250,000 Australians with a disability are feeling “forgotten” by the emergency response planning for the COVID-19 virus. Peak body National Disability Services warned Federal Human Services Minister Stuart Robert yesterday that disability providers were underprepared for the crisis, with urgent action needed to protect and retain the sector’s workforce.
“We’ve tested for usability — now we need to look at accessibility.” If you work in user research, you’ve probably heard statements like this. Researchers often go about testing for usability and accessibility as if they were separate things. We typically use one kind of framework to understand accessibility issues and another to understand usability issues.
Case in point, on Sunday, the hashtag #YouMightBeAbleistIf began to trend on Twitter, sparking tons of responses from the disability community of everyday and casual instances of ableism they’ve experienced.
Authentic representation matters and when creators, writers and the TV networks get these stories wrong, it distorts how society views people with a disability.
The problem with inspiration is its intangible quality. How to turn inspiration into habits and concrete change? Trading on inspiration also fails to appreciate wider obstacles and barriers preventing disabled people participating in sports and society.
As a blind person myself, I am all too familiar with such dehumanizing treatment. Often persons with disabilities (PWDs) are treated differently, simply because we look, act, move or communicate differently. But should our differences, stemming from disabilities that we did not choose, be an excuse or justification for others to treat us as lesser individuals?
This series of 10 episodes builds skills in supporting others in their decision-making. This kind of support is particularly important for people in our community whose decision-making has been ignored or undermined. We can help people reclaim their decision-making power through the support we offer.
In the end, Gaele Sobott felt she’d be better off at home than at the evacuation centre. Gaele, who lives with muscular dystrophy and uses a mobility scooter, was visiting her parents in the New South Wales town of Moruya when a nearby bushfire sparked advice to evacuate last week.