Accessibility and Allyship
Blog by Kerry Thompson, Senior Advisor, Inclusion & Accessibility
Today is Global Accessibility Awareness Day. Accessibility is one of the most powerful ways that persons with or without disabilities are connected around the world. Accessibility benefits all people, regardless of whether they have a disability or not, whether they live in the Global North or the Global South.
Kerry Thompson“Many of society's technological and architectural advances are rooted in accessibility tools. Do you use cell phones, instant messenger, chat, text messages, subtitles, audio books, AI meeting notes, elevators, ramps, or curb cuts? These were made possible due to the advocacy for accessibility by disability rights movements around the world.”
Become an A11y Ally
Accessibility is sometimes shortened to A11y in which the 11 stands for the 11 characters between the ‘a’ and the ‘y.’ And yes, it looks like the word “ally.” That’s hardly coincidental as the world needs allies to advance accessibility. Here’s how you can be an A11y Ally.
- Make documents accessible: Add headings, hyperlink text in a meaningful way, and add alt-text to images.
- Make social media posts accessible: Add alt-text to images and use image descriptions and captioning for videos.
- Make meetings accessible: Provide agendas and materials ahead of time, and ask attendees if they have any accessibility requirements.
- Make your ‘attitude’ accessible: Use empowering language when referring to people with disabilities.
These four tips will help make you an A11y Ally. In fact, these tips cost no money. If you want to know more, ask an organization of persons with disabilities (OPDs) for their expertise or check out many free resources on the internet and video tutorials on how to do so.
Join the Disability Rights Fund and the global disability movements to become an accessibility ally for all people.