Accessibility at Online Workshops
It would be helpful to have an accessibility person for online workshops. We all move forward whenever our connections are more inclusive. It’s more important to include everyone than it is to move quickly or follow capitalist ideas of efficiency. One way to describe a disabled person is someone whose body can’t obey the rules of capitalism.
The following are a list of specific suggestions.
INCLUSION
Access, or, as I prefer to call it, inclusion, is both a tool and a goal of liberation. Taking the time to put our attention on fully including as many people as we can goes against all forms of oppression. It goes against capitalist distresses that tell us it’s more important to be “efficient” and “productive.” Inclusion is practice for being liberated. It also increases our chances of winning our liberation.
Disability is a condition created by oppressive societies, not by human bodies. Oppressive societies decide that some kinds of bodies are wrong because they can’t produce wealth as fast as possible and don’t fit well into the existing economy. That is what makes people disabled. In a just society, full inclusion would be at the center of everything. Humans with all kinds of bodies would be equally valued. Figuring out how to make the most of each unique one of us would be one of our great shared pleasures.
INCLUSION ONLINE
The disability justice movement has put a lot of attention on inclusion and gotten very good at it. We have used Zoom and similar tools for a long time and have put our attention on inclusion in online gatherings.
There are many kinds of inclusion to consider:
People don’t have equal access to the Internet. I live in an area where my signal is not always good, and I have to use a combination of Zoom and my phone in order to not miss anything.
People who are deaf or hard of hearing, or blind or don’t see well, rely on captioning or good audio in order to participate. Captioning also helps people with memory problems and other challenges that make it difficult to keep up with what’s being said. When we don’t have live typists, we use captioning programs, but sometimes they don’t work well and people end up reading nonsense. It’s good to get recommendations for the best captioning programs from disabled people.
It’s important for people to speak slowly and clearly and do their best to get rid of background noise by closing doors and using headphones.
Zoom workshops are hard on our bodies because we can’t move around in a big room and still participate. We spend many hours sitting, which can cause back and neck pain, muscle spasms, and swelling in feet and legs. It helps to take breaks to move our bodies and encourage people to turn off cameras and get up, stretch, shake, and so on.
People take in information in many different ways. Some of us rely more on seeing and some more on hearing. Some of us have a hard time understanding words if we can’t see the person’s expressions. In person, more different kinds of information are available at once. We can see the people who are speaking, notice how they are communicating with their bodies, and hear them. We can touch other people and notice our connection while we listen. On Zoom, we just see people’s faces, among many other faces. Sometimes we can’t tell [perceive] right away who is speaking. We may have a hard time hearing people for technical reasons. We have to work harder. It’s tiring for everyone, but for people with certain disabilities it can be exhausting. So we need to be slow and clear in every way we can think of.
Language liberation practices are also helpful for other kinds of inclusion. Language liberation makes us speak more slowly, pause, and use fewer words. This also helps many people with disabilities. It’s helpful to repeat key ideas. When we say less and allow people more time to absorb ideas and discharge about them, many people are better able to remember what they’ve heard. Having a minute of silence gives those of us who are working harder to follow what’s being said a chance to rest.
People with neurological issues can have trouble with too much stimulation—too many sounds and sights and sensations all at once. In online gatherings, these are some things that can cause problems.
If lights are too dim, we have to strain our eyes. But if light is too bright, it can also cause strain. When light is behind a person, we can’t see their face, and the high contrast of light and dark can cause migraines and other problems.
When people add artificial backgrounds, or facial features like glasses or a mustache, the edges often flicker. Flickering images can cause seizures, migraines, and other neurological issues.
Many people with neurological disabilities find it hard when everyone talks at once. If our ability to filter sounds has been hurt, our brains can get flooded with noise, making it hard to think. When everyone is invited to speak at once, for example, say hello or goodbye in chorus, disabled people have to work a lot harder to stay connected.
Some online games can be difficult. For instance, as a person with head injuries and memory issues, I struggle with games that require people to react quickly, describe an action that’s different from what we’re doing, or remember details. Simple games that help us notice connection are best.
I’m sure people who have different disabilities from mine will have much to add.
Maricao, Puerto Rico
Reprinted from the e-mail discussion list for RC Community members
(Present Time 202, January 2021)