Back in the early 90's, Washington State's office of disinformation
decided that public Kiosks, placed around such places as Malls and in
airports, would allow citizens access to information that at present
would require them to go to their government offices to obtain. Of
course those designing these Kiosks were mostly young, White, healthy
males. We, at the Department of Services for the Blind, protested
these Kiosks, to no avail. But due to other issues they did not come
to fruition.
Here again is the story these events caused me to write:
IMAGINE
By Carl Jarvis
Imagine: You've just entered your office on what may well be the
most hectic, stressful day of your life; in other words, any normal
day. Suddenly you realize all of your reference books, piles of
paper-work and notes are covered with little bumps. In fact, you
discover there is not one single printed word to be found. Every
scrap of information necessary to do your job, is now in Braille.
Imagine: you rush back out of your office, wildly looking about;
peering into offices; staring over the shoulders of clerks. Everybody
is calmly doing their job, using Braille. Mysteriously they have
learned the language overnight. Only you, it seems, were overlooked.
For some unknown reason, you are permanently and totally Braille
challenged.
Imagine: you dash for the door hoping the rest of the world has not
gone mad. It has. In the elevator, you're not sure which button to
press for the lobby. Someone has to help you. They stare at you as
if you are stupid. Pausing at the news stand, you are unable to tell
one magazine from another. You can't stand it, you need to go home
and collect your thoughts. But at the bus stop, there's no way of
telling which coach is yours. You back away, not wanting anyone to
know, and you decide you'll call a cab. Of course, you only brought
bus fare and lunch money, not nearly enough for the taxi. Remembering
your bank card, you pull it out as you run back into the lobby.
There, at the access machine, you stop short. The card has turned to
Braille, and so have all of the instructions on the machine. You'll
have to call home and ask for help. Funny, you never paid much
attention to the telephone dial and now, in your growing state of
confusion, you don't recall which number goes where. You are so
alone, so frightened, you actually begin to weep.
Imagine: you have always seen yourself as a leader; a visionary, a
problem-solver. You will not run from this challenge. You shall
succeed. You have a large mortgage.
Once you have recovered from the great shock, you begin looking for
ways to survive.
Imagine: you have finally made arrangements, through your employer,
to hire a Braille reader, a process so complex and painful you plan to
patent it and use it to torture spies. Now you sit in your chair
going quietly mad listening to the drone of your reader's voice,
taking hours of time to cover what you once scanned in minutes, while
others whip about you efficiently communicating among themselves via
Braille-FAX and E-B-mail. You begin to feel the "ice" in isolation.
Imagine: you learn you are not alone. You are a member of a very
small minority of Braille-Challenged people. There is, in fact, a
Braille-less Culture; a history far too long and complex to discuss
here. So, you become a member of the, Braille-less Association of
America. (BAA) At the BAA meetings you find out about a number of
small companies manufacturing adaptive equipment which enables
Braille-less persons to access all of the Braille computers, FAX
machines, Braille scanners and Braillers.
The expense is far more than you can afford, so you seek assistance
from your employer. Your request is turned down. There are no
requirements that your employer accommodate your disability.
Imagine: BAA, along with many other disability groups, battle in
Congress for the passage of a Bill, guaranteeing you equal treatment
under the Law.
The bill passes and, despite subtle, subliminal negative messages from
your fiscal officer--money is, "found" for your accommodation. After
considerable time and effort, the technician from the Department of
Services for the Braille-less, has you on-line. Now you are able to
scan Braille text and convert the little dots into letters, and
through a very complex process, the Braille display on your computer
is transformed into print. Finally, you are again up to speed, being
your old efficient self, feeling good about your work.
Imagine: you are humming and smiling and cranking along in high gear.
Suddenly, a message flashes on your screen and drives terror through
your heart. New breakthroughs in technology have produced equipment
so superior to the ancient junk--at least four years old-- presently
in use, that your organization is up-grading the entire communications
system.
The BAA, technicians have already informed you that your adaptive
equipment is not compatible with it. You go to the,
"Powers-That-Be" in your organization, and request a meeting to
discuss this concern. You are told that your fears are groundless.
You will not be forgotten. Following this meeting A rumor goes around
hinting that you are trying to sabotage the new system, and your
associates begin to whisper behind your back. They want the new
system. It's far superior, more compact, ten times faster, and it's
cool looking. They are sick of your whining and constant complaining.
You feel the "ice" settling in again.
Imagine: you have been forgotten. The new system is in place.
Everybody loves it. You've been told not to worry, someone will be
around to do what is necessary to put you back on-line. The "someone"
they had in mind is the same technician who told you the system would
not work.
Despite your concerns, no one bothered to investigate before the
equipment was installed.
Once again you sit, going quietly mad while your reader plows line by
line through the piles of Braille.
Imagine: you know you are close to losing your mind or your
job--probably both. You must find other employment, but you do not
want your associates to know you are finally beaten. You try to
figure out a way to do a quiet job search when all information is only
accessible in Braille.
One day you hear that your State has developed a central information
center, called a, "kiosk". These information centers are being set up
in easily accessible locations. The plan is for these kiosks to make
government information and services available quickly and
conveniently, to the public. Sort of a "one stop shopping center".
You learn that lists of job openings are among the many services
offered. This is perfect. This is exactly what you need. you
discover your town recently placed a kiosk in the Mall. You go there
on Saturday afternoon. There it stands, costing the tax payers
hundreds of thousands of dollars to create, but well worth it. In its
ultimate form, the kiosks will bring virtually all State services
right into your local neighborhood. You are thrilled as you step up
to the controls. An automated voice welcomes you and brags about the
wonders of this system. Breathlessly, you wait for your
instructions...
Then, the Braille display appears.
Imagine: they are dragging you away, shrieking at the top of your
voice. Onlookers are amazed. They do not know how you managed to rip
the iron bench from the floor of the Mall. None of them dared to try
to stop you as you swung it over your head, again and again, smashing
the kiosk into pieces of broken plastic, glass and twisted metal.
None of them understand why you kept screaming the same words over and
over.
"I pay taxes, too! I pay taxes, too! I pay taxes, too!"
Imagine!...
On 1/25/16, joe harcz Comcast <joeharcz@comcast.net> wrote:
> United Ducks Appeal Over Kiosks for the Blind
>
> By MARIA DINZEO
>
>
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> SAN FRANCISCO (CN) - United Airlines need not face a class action over its
> limited number of kiosks accessible to blind travelers at California
> airports,
>
> the Ninth Circuit ruled Tuesday.
>
> Issuing its decision 38 months after hearing
>
> oral arguments,
>
> the three-judge panel said federal statutes pre-empt the National Federation
> for the Blind's claims for violation of California's Unruh Civil Rights
> Act.
>
> Such claims furthermore do not relate to a "service" provided by
> United, as outlined by the Airline Deregulation Act, according to the
> ruling.
>
> The National Federation of the Blind sued United Airlines back in
> October 2010, joined by three individuals - Michael May, Michael Hingson and
> Christina
>
> Thomas.
>
> Rather than offering audio output or other blind-friendly alternatives,
> United's machines operated exclusively by video and touch-screen
> navigation,
>
> according to the complaint
>
> U.S. District Judge William Alsup dismissed the action, finding the
> claims pre-empted by both the Airline Deregulation Act and the Air Carrier
> Access
>
> Act.
>
> Affirming on Tuesday, the Ninth Circuit pointed to its en banc opinion
> in the 1998 case Charas v. Trans World Airlines, which determined that the
> term
>
> "service" in the Americans with Disabilities Act refers to the provision of
> air transportation - such as "the prices, schedules, origins and
> destinations
>
> of the point-to-point transportation of passengers, cargo or mail," not
> airline-provided amenities like drinks and luggage handling.
>
> Though the Federal Aviation Act contains a broad savings clause, it did
> not result in a reversal today.
>
> "According to the federation, any state-law claims that fall outside
> the scope of the ADA express preemption provision are necessarily preserved
> by
>
> the FAA's savings clause. Not so," Judge Marsha Berzon wrote for a
> three-judge panel.
>
> Under the federation's interpretation, "a passenger could sue an
> airline for violating any state standard of care not expressly preempted by
> the ADA,
>
> notwithstanding federal regulations covering in depth the particular field
> at issue," Berzon noted.
>
> "The result would be chaotic."
>
> New Department of Transportations regulations on accessibility of
> airport kiosks furthermore speak "directly to the concerns raised by the
> federation's
>
> suit," the ruling states.
>
> "Given its great detail and pervasive extent, the new regulation
> preempts any state regulation of that same field," Berzon wrote.
>
> Document
>
> Source:
>
> http://www.courthousenews.com/2016/01/19/united-ducks-appeal-over-kiosks-for-the-blind.htm
>
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