Frequently Asked Questions - Will not a strong focus on access in the Information Society distract from efforts to improve access in today's society?

This is a first draft answer to the question, comments and improvements welcome! Please comment by mail to ISdAC at secretary@isdac.org

This concern has hampered developments in access to work and society for people with disabilities (PwDs). The main institutions supporting PwDs have campaigned long and hard for equality of access to the conventional work and social environment - buildings, public transport, jobs etc. Such equality of access is still a long way from being fully realised and there are great variations from country to country, from town to town, from employer to employer and so forth. The campaigns must go on.

In these circumstances its understandable that people who are most closely concerned with this kind of issue should be suspicious of anything that may distract attention from what has for many of them been a lifelong cause and struggle. There are signs of positive developments in society's understanding of, respect for and support to PwDs and people don't want anything to get in the way of success when real results are being achieved or are at least in sight.

ISdAC's view is that the campaign for equality of access and parity of esteem for PwDs must not only continue but should be intensified. The Information Society adds to the built environment, it doesn't replace it. Staying at home when others are meeting face to face - whether for work or for pleasure - still represents exclusion. But our campaign for equality of access in the Information Society and for the effective use today of ICTs to enhance access must not be delayed while we campaign for equality of physical access - the two campaigns are complementary and must march together. The view of some members of the ISdAC team is that new technologies open new ways for social integration and that the fears of isolation, with exceptions, are not justified.

Over the next few years the nature of the Information Society will be determined and now is the time to ensure that equality of access and opportunities is built into the design. In the conventional world we are struggling to "add on" equality of access after centuries of inequality. The additions are expensive and difficult and there is a lot of inertia to be overcome. It will take many more years and may even be an indefinite programme. The Information Society hasn't yet been built and furnished. Patterns of thought and behaviour have still to develop and mature. Building the ISdAC vision now means that "inclusive" thinking and behaviours can be inculcated from the start, and the "ramps" for equality of access can be part of the design.

Yes its true that we will have to work hard to make sure that campaigns focused on the Information Society and the uses of ICTs complement rather than distracting from campaigns for equality of opportunities and access in today's world. But the one thing we cannot afford to do is to soft-pedal the needs of PwD in an Information Society context - all that would achieve would the creation of yet another mountain to climb in the future.

FAQ index