I recently read two articles that inspired me enough to return to blogging.
Peter Downs developed a framework to support the inclusion of people with disabilities in sports and recreation called the “7 Pillars of Inclusion” as part of Play by the Rules. [1] The “7 Pillars” extend far beyond inclusive recreation, sports, and physical activity. Key concepts promoted by the pillars include access, choice, and communication. [2]
Timothy R. Clark wrote an article in Forbes Magazine titled “Diversity Is A Fact, Inclusion Is A Choice.” One of the themes identified in Clark’s article is the idea that ‘innovation is the process of connecting people and connecting things’. [3]
My personal insertion and view is that inclusion is more than bringing ideas and people in. Inclusion is about supporting engagement and participation. Participation is about getting people with multiple disabilities represented, included and involved. People with a variety of disabilities and a range of needs can provide critical input and support to resolve physical, programmatic, and communication barriers that exist and negatively affect programs and service delivery. The foundations of inclusion begin with representation, participation, and access. This piece will touch upon key definitions and examples.
The challenge in trying to espouse and support the foundations of inclusion is that a lot of work remains to debunk myths and misperceptions about people with disabilities. In my own circumstance, people can sometimes “feel sorry” for me or perceive my disability as a personal tragedy or as something that needs to be cured. The reality is that my walking differences do not translate into a lower quality of life.
Integrating the principles of access, choice, and communication as part of inclusion involves examining the physical, programmatic, and communication barriers that exist for people with disabilities. Examples of physical access barriers include having steps without ramp access, lacking automatic or push-button doors, or facing narrow sidewalks, doorways, and aisles.
I suspect many people without disabilities navigate throughout their communities without having to consider the height of stairs and curb cuts. Most don’t think about the width of hallways. I suspect that most people do not think twice about opening a door to enter or exit a building.
Physical access in its simplest form means having the ability to get in, out, and around a physical space. Physical access includes elements like accessible routes, ramps, elevators, signage, entrances, restroom accessibility, and parking.
Programmatic access means that a person with a disability can equally participate in a program or service. [4] Modifying procedures or systems to support participation and use of services in the same way as a person without a disability is called an accommodation. Examples of accommodations include providing assistive listening systems, sign language interpretation, and presenting informational materials in braille, audio, and large print formats.
Communication access means that communication is made possible through “auxiliary aids and services” such as sign language interpreters or real-time captioning services, so that people who are deaf, hard-of-hearing, deaf-blind, or speech-impaired can equally participate in programs, services, and activities. [5] Communication access also covers environmental accessibility. For example, visual fire alarms are one form of communication access. [6]
For the principles of inclusion to be truly recognized and embraced,
- People with all types of disabilities must be represented and engaged as active participants and partners for their input and experience to resolve critical access barriers;
- Stereotypes and misconceptions about people with disabilities must be evaluated, questioned, and discredited; and
- Physical, Programmatic, and Communication access needs to be continually weighed and measured.
Accessibility Resources:
Community Toolbox: “Tactics for Modifying Access, Barriers, and Opportunities”
Community Toolbox: “Ensuring Access for People with Disabilities” https://cutt.ly/VZd5zec
Works Cited
[5] https://nwadacenter.org/topics/ada-title-ii-state-and-local-government
[6] https://nwadacenter.org/topics/ada-title-ii-state-and-local-government