Today, May 20, 2021, I am celebrating my initial Global Accessibility Awareness Day! It is my first time even hearing of this very special day that affects one-sixth of the world’s population and I am making it a part of my new foray into technology and assistive technology. I’m excited to learn that this is the tenth annual GAAD. Great!
I used to say that “people who have sight create these new devices without us in mind and they just don’t care about us.” Every time I would think this sentiment, I would get mad but also feel defeated because I thought that there was nothing I could do about the inequities around those of us that have disabilities and access to new and interesting products. Now, I am learning that, the people that develop exciting and new things, a lot of times just don’t know what we need. It is up to people like us to make our voices heard and try to educate those that really want to know. Today is one of the days we can do that and as someone who is totally blind and hearing impaired, it gives me hope that change can come if we keep the conversation going. I will be attending a lot of Zoom calls and Clubhouse rooms about this event, and using today and beyond to reflect on what I can do to help change things. Check out this post on the Freedom Scientific Blog for more information!
