retailconnection

July is Disability Pride Month, and it is a great opportunity to honor people in the disability community and celebrate those with disabilities. Ever since President George H.W Bush signed the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) into law in 1990, July has been an important month in the history of disability rights. For this Disability Pride Month, we will be addressing accessibility, an important issue for disability rights.

What is accessibility? A general definition is “the practice of making information, activities, and/or environments sensible, meaningful, and usable for as many people as possible.” It’s important to also consider Section 508 which is a U.S. governmental regulation that covers disability policies and accessibility compliance requirements for government entities, federal employers, and subcontractors and their information and communication technologies.

In this blog, we’ll cover two specific examples of accessibility:

Accessibility in Architecture:

Accessibility in building designs is an area most people are familiar with or have encountered. Accessibility in architecture “refers to the capacity people have to access and inhabit a space, despite their cognitive and physical impairment.” Many not be aware of how many different areas accessibility should be considered. Here are some general guidelines to consider:

• Does your entrance have barriers that make it inaccessible for certain people to access?
• Are doorways wide enough to accommodate wheelchairs or other mobility needs?
• Are there areas of the building that can only be accessed by stairs? If so, consider ramps, lifts, or elevators to ensure that all people can access all areas.
• Is there ample floor space and can counters and tables be accessed by people who are also in wheelchairs or other mobility devices?

Accessibility Online:

Web accessibility means that websites, tools, and technologies are designed and developed so that people with disabilities can use them. The Web Accessibility Initiative (WAI) is an international organization that authors accessibility guidelines for web content: Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG). Though primarily focused on accessibility of content on the web, these standards inform how content in other contexts (e.g., MS Office documents, PDF, etc.) should be made accessible (seewritehear.com). When considering if your website is accessible, here are some things to consider:

• When considering if your website is accessible, here are some things to consider:
• Have you provided a suitable text equivalent for everything that’s not text?
• Can customers get all the important information from your videos and audio, even if they can’t see them? Can customers get all the important information from your videos and audio, even if they can’t hear them?
• Have you made sure that nothing flashes quickly?

For more help with making your website accessible, consider this helpful resource.

Stay tuned for next week’s blog where we will go more in depth on ways you can make your college store more accessible.