How Inclusive Design Drives Culture
Last year, the Transformative Culture Project was lucky enough to organize for the Disability community. In partnership with ArtsEmerson, we organized Boston’s first Fashion Accessibility Project, a fashion show highlighting the importance of inclusive fashion. We learned so much during the process of putting together the event, talking with our models and other disability organizations in Boston. What we realized ultimately is that there’s a lot that we don’t know when it comes to accessible community programming.
Over 56.7 million Americans live with a disability- 24% of Bostonians identify as being disabled.
The Mass Cultural Council began their UP Innovative Learning Network after the Boston Marathon Bombing to help reduce the silos in our state when it comes to accessible programming and spaces. We were thrilled to be accepted into the program and to begin our journey into learning and growing as an organization.
The biggest misconception about disability accessibility is the fact that accessibility is not just about disability- it’s about an intentional anticipation of human variety while making preemptive decisions about inclusive design. Design is a civil and human right for everyone and the argument is not for special solutions but for full integration.
If you’re a community organizer, you must be in constant conversation with your programming- are you truly making it equally accessible for everyone? If 1/4 Bostonians identify as having a disability, are you being inclusive and aware of everyone’s needs?
TCP has learned a lot so far about how inaccessible some of our programming is. UP ILN came to our office space to conduct an onsite review and there were a lot of things that we need to improve on. Our space is not wheelchair friendly, nor is signage clear from the street for anyone with limited eyesight. Our bathrooms are also a point of contention as they lack supportive bars and adequate turning space.
While some organizations may be limited by their spaces and what they can and can’t make changes to, there are always innovative ways to combat any inaccessibility in your programming. For us, making a “Know Before You Go” video will let visitors know of some of our limitations before visiting us or our events. Technology and live streaming can also be employed. We talked about live streaming our #AccelerateBos classes for anyone physically unable to participate in the program.
We are excited to continue to learn and adjust to better serve everyone in our communities!
