Relationships not checklists — A theory of accessibility

Me (pale round faced woman with reddish hair and sparkly sunglasses on her head looking confidently at camera). This is on the accessible shuttle at Seattle airport which some days made the stop accessible for me and some days did not depending on my own capacity.)

Disabled people are forced to become accessibility detectives. When there is an event we want to go to we can’t just go. First we need to figure out if it is accessible. Ideally, accessibility information is clearly listed on the event information, along with contact information for questions or to request additional accommodations. This is rare.

Typically, no one has thought about accommodations or disabled people and there is no information. Unless it is something I will be paid for or something I am already invested in, I don’t even bother to try to go to these events. Even if it is at a venue that tends to be accessible for me, I don’t trust that should an additional access need arise (such as needing to lay down, or be next to the bathroom, or whatever these unpredictable illnesses are doing to me), that it would be met without having to be traumatized in the process. (Do nondisabled people know what I mean here? I know disabled people do.)

It’s great that people are (way too slowly) starting to realize that they should be thinking about accessibility. However, few individuals and organizations are willing to put the necessary resources into actually making events accessible. Ideally, organizations would hire an expert to help them understand disability justice and what accessibility is really about and they would put…