History and Impact Makers
Of Accessibility and Design
How Does Accessibility Relate To Design?
Online content that meets accessibility requirements is likely to be more user-friendly for everyone. People without disabilities can benefit from accessible design, particularly when they are in limiting situations such as: Reading captions for a video when in noisy or quiet environments.
Disability Rights Movement
The ongoing effort for equal rights within the disability rights movement persists. Entities advocating for individuals with disabilities have been present since the 1800s, gaining significant traction in the following century. Notably, the League of the Physically Handicapped emerged in the 1930s, staunchly advocating for employment opportunities amid the challenges of the Great Depression.
Links To Learn More
MEHROTRA, NILIKA. “Disability Rights Movements in India: Politics and Practice.” Economic and Political Weekly, vol. 46, no. 6, 2011, pp. 65–72. JSTOR, http://www.jstor.org/stable/27918121.
Longmore, Paul K. “The End of the Beginning: The Disability Rights Movement in the 1970s.” Journal of Civil and Human Rights, vol. 6, no. 2, 2020, pp. 81–92. JSTOR, https://doi.org/10.5406/jcivihumarigh.6.2.0081.
Independent Living Movement
Independent Living encompasses both a cultural movement and a program, prioritizing the individual over their disability. It advocates for a perspective that places the person before their impairment. The Independent Living Community strives for equitable opportunities, ensuring that individuals with disabilities can fully participate in and enjoy the benefits of society.
Links To Learn More
Pelka, Fred. “Independent Living.” What We Have Done: An Oral History of the Disability Rights Movement, University of Massachusetts Press, 2012, pp. 197–226. JSTOR, http://www.jstor.org/stable/j.ctt5vk2js.16.
Jacqueline Ellis, and Ellen Gruber Garvey. “Introduction.” Transformations: The Journal of Inclusive Scholarship and Pedagogy, vol. 25, no. 2, 2016, pp. 11–14. JSTOR, https://doi.org/10.5325/trajincschped.25.2.0011.
Deinstitutionalization Movement
While the aims of deinstitutionalization include preventing chronic disability, safeguarding patients’ rights, and lowering care expenses, mental health patients discharged from hospitals have often been relocated to communities lacking sufficient supportive networks.
Links To Learn More
Fleischer, Doris Zames, and Frieda Zames. “Deinstitutionalization and Independent Living.” The Disability Rights Movement: From Charity to Confrontation, Temple University Press, 2011, pp. 33–48. JSTOR, http://www.jstor.org/stable/j.ctt14bt7kv.11.
Ilan Wiesel & Christine Bigby (2015) Movement on Shifting Sands: Deinstitutionalisation and People with Intellectual Disability in Australia, 1974–2014, Urban Policy and Research, 33:2, 178-194, DOI: 10.1080/08111146.2014.980902
Impact Makers
Here Is One of the many impact makers that push the A11Y format.
Patricia Moore
1952
Patricia Moore, born in 1952, is an American industrial designer, gerontologist, and author, renowned for her contributions to the universal design philosophy. In her book “Disguised,” published in 1985, she documented her experiences navigating the world with a changed body, highlighting the connections she formed and the prejudice she encountered. Moore emphasized the need to challenge perceptions of aging, stating, “Old has become a synonym for being useless, ugly, unimportant, of less value.” She aimed to drive this change through dialogue about her own experiences and advocacy for a new approach to product design.
Today, Moore, founder of MooreDesign Associates in the early 1980s, is hailed as one of the pioneers of “universal design,” advocating for products and environments that cater to diverse individuals. She has lent her design expertise to esteemed companies like Johnson & Johnson, Boeing, Kraft, AT&T, Herman Miller, and 3M. Known affectionately as the “Mother of Empathy” in the industry, colleagues have dubbed her a Jedi, a unicorn, and a design goddess in interviews. David Kusuma, president of the World Design Organization, remarked, “I don’t think there is anyone in the design world who hasn’t heard of her.”
Moore’s younger self remembers seeing her grandmother with arthritis struggle with everyday activities such as opening her fridge door. She was furious that the upper-level executives were only designed for middle-aged people. She set out to help on behalf of the elderly consumers. She is known as “the Mother of Empathy”. She got hurt in her journey and that made her struggle with her day to day activities as well.
In 1974, Patricia Moore began her industrial design career at Raymond Loewy International in New York City. At 26, in 1979, she embarked on an innovative sociological experiment. Disguised as an elderly woman named “Old Pat,” with the aid of makeup prosthetics and wardrobe, she traversed the United States and Canada. Through this immersive experience, she sought to understand the daily challenges faced by elders, simulating various health and financial situations. Despite positive encounters, such as receiving assistance, she encountered frustrations like struggling to open candy wrappers due to simulated physical impairments. Tragically, during one outing, she was violently mugged by a group of boys, resulting in lasting injuries.
Here are some video links to provide more information.
https://youtu.be/ZvIuymFVn5A?si=Dap5rr4Tlej27iSA
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AzjEfozVWj0
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cpNlBML2FFo