On September 11th, 2001, the United States was suddenly and brutally attacked by a faceless coward who used civilian aircraft as weapons and workplaces as targets. Nearly three thousand of our fellow citizens were murdered that day with countless thousands left with mental and physical disabilities. The entire nation however of some three hundred million were socially and psychologically injured and disabled by that injury. That national American disability has corrupted our civic life.
Imagine being 78 stories up in the Twin Towers during the terrorist attacks; that was the location a blind 9/11 survivor found himself in before he escaped the collapsing World Trade Center on the fateful day that changed the world. Now, as the 20-year mark of the September 11th attacks approaches, Michael Hingson lives to tell his remarkable story of how his guide dog, Roselle, led him and others to safety on one of the darkest days in U.S. history, joining FOX Business’s “Cavuto: Coast to Coast.” Thursday to do just that…
Disabled people, who are already among the most adversely affected by climate change, are facing new risks from climate mitigation efforts. Advocates are sounding the alarm after July flooding in Germany killed 12 residents of a group home for disabled people in the town of Sinzig that was unable to evacuate in time. Almost exactly a year before, flooding killed 14 nursing home residents in Kuma, Japan. “As more and more extreme weather events occur due to changing climate conditions, this risk becomes greater,” said Mary Keogh, author of a 2020 paper that found disabled people are among the five groups most vulnerable to the impacts of climate change…
Last month, Atkinson Hyperlegible typeface became available on Google Fonts. Created by Applied Design Works with guidance from the Braille Institute, Atkinson Hyperlegible is designed to aid readability for users with low vision. The font is named for Robert J. Atkinson, founder of the Braille Institute. Atkinson Hyperlegible improved legibility because “it breaks the traditional typographic approach of uniformity, and instead focuses on letterform distinction to increase character recognition, ultimately improving readability,” according to a press release from the Braille Institute…
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Adverse mental health symptoms and substance use were more prevalent among U.S. adults with disability than those without before and after the COVID-19 pandemic, according to findings published in MMWR. “Adults with disabilities, a group including >25% of U.S. adults, experience higher levels of mental health and substance use conditions and lower treatment rates than do adults without disabilities,” Mark É. Czeisler, MD candidate at Harvard Medical School, and colleagues wrote…
The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth District in Pasadena has decided that a judgment in favor of the stadium where the Seattle Mariners play did not adequately explain how the stadium accommodates visitors in wheelchairs. In their federal lawsuit against the owners and operators of the park, a group of fans claimed the park does not have accessible sightlines that make it possible for folks in wheelchairs to see all of the game, such as the playing field and the scoreboard, according to Courthouse News…
The world of accessibility has experienced a tipping point thanks to the pandemic, which drove people of all abilities to do more tasks and shopping online. For the last year, the digital world was the only place brands could connect with their customers. A Forrester survey found that 8 in 10 companies have taken their first steps toward working on digital accessibility. What’s driving this change besides the increased digital interactions? Fortune 500 companies are finally starting to realize that people with disabilities make up 1 billion of the world’s market…
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As the highly contagious delta variant rages, and U.S. death counts from the virus again begin to rise, COVID-19 has largely shifted from a pandemic of all citizens to a pandemic of the unvaccinated. But while the Biden-Harris administration pours more than $120 million into grassroots efforts to encourage hesitant Americans to get the jab, and the Pfizer vaccine’s recent FDA approval means that more vaccine mandates are likely to follow, one very large sector of the population continues to be shut out: people with disabilities…
Tinnitus is the medical term for noise in your ear in the absence of an external sound. It’s a common condition that’s thought to affect about 10 percent of people. The sound may come or go or remain constant. There are two types of tinnitus. Subjective tinnitus means no one else can hear the sound. Objective tinnitus means the sound can be heard by a medical professional using a stethoscope placed to the ear canal. The most common type is subjective tinnitus…
No two disabled people have the same exact needs or experiences surrounding resources that do and don’t help us. The spectrum of disability is vast — from people with hearing or speech impairments, visual disabilities, motor limitations, developmental and neurological conditions, and people who are multiply-disabled. While many might never use these features or even know they exist, thoughtful and well-integrated accessibility features are life-changing for many disabled people…
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