Conference Accessibility: Time to Get Real
My name is Cecilia and I have a short-term disability.
My disability is the result of an injury sustained in my daily life. The injury was painful and the impact on my activities of daily living (ADL) was immediate and far reaching. I spent 10 weeks on bedrest/no weight bearing on the left leg due to a tibial plateau fracture. My leg completely atrophied during this time and despite the fracture completely healing, I could not walk. I still have difficulty walking and need to use a mobility device to get around despite my improvement (I use a walker or a cane).
Now that I have the lived experience of navigating the physical space with a disability, and seeing where things could improve or change, I have been sharing my individual lived experience and my ideas based on this.
I no longer need to imagine what it is like because I know first-hand what it is like. This led me to write articles and make suggestions based on my own experiences as someone with a short-term disability.
On September 19, 2024, I posted an article on my blog titled: “Conference Accessibility Lounges: The Time is Now.” This article was meant as a starting point for conversation to find ways to finally make this happen. I also wrote about my experiences attending a conference with a disability in the September 3, 2024, USAE News guest column; that article is titled: “The Unexpected and Accessibility: A Trip to a Cleveland Conference.” It reports on my lived experience and shares my ideas for improvements.
Despite my intention to spark ideas, conversation, and finally action on these issues, there are certain individuals in the disability community who pummeled me online because “I don’t know what it is like.” They also said that I need to talk to disabled people before making any suggestions. Then I was “schooled” in how diverse the disability community is – including those with short-term disability.
UM – YES, RIGHT HERE. Short-term disability person sharing their experience.
And the attitude and assumption that I don’t know any disabled people is condescending and small-minded. The people accusing me of being an ableist never bothered to ask. In fact, I know many people dealing with disabilities and I see how challenging the physical space can be for them and how it limits options for activities.
By email and via online communities, I was the recipient of lists of grievances still held onto after decades. I was repeatedly told that I had to read certain books, use certain language, and listen to certain speakers.
I get the anger and frustration. And now that I have lived the experience, I’m doing what I can to make things change. But that wasn’t good enough because I don’t spout their dogma or propagate their faith.
This led to my recent article, “Let Go of the Past to Win Hearts and Minds” published on September 26, 2024. Like all humans I too can hang onto things from the past that bother me or enrage me. But I have learned that the only way to resolve issues is to let that go and find the solutions.
Focusing on this micro-issue of conference accessibility, and I say it is micro because accessibility is a broad issue touching every part of life, it’s time to get real. It’s time to stop the finger-pointing, the grievance bashing, and the accusations of ableism.
The only way things change is if a broad coalition of individuals come together to make it happen. That means those with disabilities need to work WITH those who don’t have them, not dictate to them and try to beat them into intellectual submission.
You didn’t have to be black to know that the Civil Rights Movement was right. You don’t need to be disabled to know that accessibility is the right thing to do.
My suggestion of Conference Accessibility Lounges was an example and a suggestion of a way to acknowledge that not all conference attendees experience the conference in the same way. Conference lounges are an offering we do frequently and it is relatable. Having a common reference is how communication happens and leads to action.
It was not suggested, as one online purveyor of misinformation framed it, to “isolate the disabled” and keep them away from everyone else. It’s a lounge. Not a prison.
Since the Accessibility Lounge was a suggestion to get people thinking, how about Accessibility Stations throughout the conference area? This removes the need to go to one specific location at the conference and allows access to services everywhere. These stations could be designed for those with accessibility needs so they can easily do what they need to do, like charging devices or grabbing a snack.
As a person with a short-term disability, I reported my own experience and offered real-world suggestions for improvements. At the conference, I heard short-term disability stories from other attendees who spoke about what they saw and confronted. These insights should not be discounted because their short-term disability ended; rather, it should be taken into account for future conference design.
It's time to get real about conference accessibility. It is my hope that this micro-step will lead to a ripple effect across the nonprofit community regarding increased accessibility in all situations. We need to let go of the past, and what didn’t work or what didn’t happen, and make change.
My experience is equally valid because it is mine. I will do what I can to help because now I’ve lived it and I’ve seen up close where we can make things better.
