I am terrified of the reflection that full length windows show. I glance into these windows and I see how I walk, a stride that is slightly off balance and resembles that of a drunk person. This walk is a lifelong reminder that there was a lack of oxygen to my brain during my birth—the evidence that I have Cerebral Palsy. As I prepare to graduate in May from Vanderbilt University, I find myself conflicted between recognizing that I am incredibly fortunate to have a Vanderbilt education, but also accepting that having a visible disability at Vanderbilt has been a challenging experience. . There is a bizarre irony behind the fact that at a university that is home to one of the top special education graduate programs in the country, the only space Vanderbilt dedicates to serving students with disabilities is in the windowless Baker building, a location far removed from campus that primarily houses ancillary functions of the university. The idea of separating people with disabilities is a dated approach that is reflective of a time when individuals with disabilities were warehoused in schools and hospitals, far removed from society. The most logical reason that I have heard for this is that the university wants to protect the anonymity of students who visit Disability Services. Unfortunately, as a person with a visible disability, I have never had the luxury of hoping that people do not notice the way that I walk. Disability services falls under Equal Opportunity,…
After reading the “Slate” article and listening to the “Icon For Access” podcast, two opposite approaches to whether or not the international wheelchair symbol should be redesigned, I was able to learn about the affordance of different modes and the reaction each can get. Modes are methods of communicating or getting something across. Audio narration, alphabetic text, video interview, soundtrack, and image are all examples of modes. These modes can be utilized to help circulate (spread…
The Fair Housing Act is an act creating seven basic guidelines that must be met in compliance with the access requirements of the Act. The guidelines require are that the buildings to be must have an accessible entrance on an accessible course, that the building must include reachable common and public use areas, as well as handy (informal) doors that are usable for a person in a wheelchair. The home must also have an accessible route in and out of the dwelling. Light switches, electrical…
The Americans with Disabilities Act is a civil rights law created for individuals with disabilities. It came about from the disability rights movement where thousands of people began fighting against the segregation that people with disabilities were facing. They voiced that these individuals should be treated equally and get the same opportunities as everyone else and fought to make this happen. The ADA “prohibits discrimination against individuals with disabilities in all areas of public…
The ADA Accessibility checklist provides part of the requirements found in the ADA Accessible Guidelines (ADAAG). The Guidelines are part of the Department of Justice Title II Regulations, 28 CFR Part 35 (Nondiscrimination on the basis of disability in State and Local Government Services). The requirements are a guide to assist the agency in determining what may be a readily achievable barrier removal. The checklist serves as a guide to assist the agency in identifying accessibility problems…
In order to gain insight into the livelihoods of our potential users, we dedicated hours of time to Internet research on the "blind individual experience". According to the Perkins School of the Blind fewer than 2 percent of visually impaired people use a white cane to navigate, most use a service dog or nothing at all to navigate their daily lives 1. This statistic is not particularly surprising, but it is reassuring as it provides concrete evidence that our product will have a large audience…
In society today, those with a disability face battles every single day. Those battles could include having trouble getting around, being stared at, dealing with faces being made at them, or even being mocked. The buildings that we have today are not all made for those in wheelchairs or who have difficulties with stairs. When they go down the street or into a store, they are constantly looked at. Some are even made fun of for their disability, for something they have no control over. All of this…
After reading the articles It made me think about why I chose social work as my major. I remember when I was younger seeing someone being mistreat and abuse this made me very angry I decided to take action and reported this kind of behavior. Reading this articles made me think about the unfortunate experience that I had to go through, I was not surprise that during the ancient era parents will neglect and abuse their children.From what I know is that if a parent had a child with disabilities…
This part of the law ensures the disabled have public access to transportation, which includes rail service (both public and private), streets and sidewalks, buses and taxi providers. Access to public accommodations is addressed in the law. This provides easy access to public spaces for the disabled including entrances, access to public restrooms and public gathering spaces. Finally, Title IV of the law addresses accessibility of telecommunications for the disabled (Americans with Disabilities…
Canadian Human Rights Commission were related to disability.” Clearly, employers are receiving a disproportionate number of claims regarding physical accessibility in the workplace. Layla Thérèse, a Canadian with cerebral palsy, told TVO (2016), “In my cover letters I clearly state that I have a disability, that I use a wheelchair, and I would ask, ‘Are you wheelchair accessible?’ Nine times out of 10 the answer was, ‘We had no idea you needed that. No, we’re not. We’re sorry. Best of luck in…