Disabled Association Pros & Accessibility Allies

A short history of Disability Pride and the Disability Pride Flag https://www.womansday.com/life/a43964487/disability-pride-flag/

Some ways to celebrate Disability Pride Month https://thearc.org/blog/why-and-how-to-celebrate-disability-pride-month/

Nothing About Us Without Us - origin story from South African disability advocates (yes disability is intersectional)

"This has morphed into Nothing Without Us" because you will find in so many places and organizations that non-disability informed and non-disability led decisions have direct impact (not positive ones by the way - usually layering in additional barriers under the marketing premise of "doing good for disabled people.") on disabled people.

https://www.ndi.org/our-stories/nothing-about-us-without-us-nothing-without-us#:~:text=First%20invoked%20by%20the%20South,over%20decisions%20affecting%20their%20lives.

Watch for DisabilityPrideWashing - the same as RainbowWashing during 2SLGBTQIA Pride Month - for "celebrations" of Disability Pride where there is not equitable access provided to disabled people, but a lot of effort put forth to tell you about their support of disabled people.

Equitable access means no additional layers, no needs to request access, no othering....

Nothing Without Us

Be sure to ask for transparency and project/roadmaps from organizations that are putting forth claims.

There's nothing wrong with an organization being at the start of a plan. But implementing inaccessible practices or less than accessible services is not starting with first understanding the impact on disabled people.
Ethics calls on us to be transparent and be aware if anyone is harmed in decisions, disabled people continue to be harmed when inaccessible and inequitable business decisions are forced on them.

July and Disability Pride Month are great times to review your policies and procedures and products and procurement practices to start shifting towards accessibility as how you deliver your work.

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Samantha Evans, CAE, ICE-CCP, MBA (she/her)
The Accessible CAE
sam.evans@accessibilityassociation.org
Certification Director
Intl. Assoc. of Accessibility Professionals, a division of G3ict
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#NothingWithoutUs

Thanks, @Samantha Evans, ICE-CCP, CAE, for your work and continuing advocacy.

Just before reading your post, I was on the Mayo Connect site for people with long COVID. So here, I "out" myself with having an increasing mobility disability, now complicated by long COVID. In the Mayo group are people who are differently disabled from long COVID (or Post COVID) and we all wonder why we are forgotten.

This month is not enough as any month is not to be fully inclusive. 

It can be a time of raised awareness. I wonder who is doing so and what they will tell us.

Joan