On Friday, Oct 8, 2010, 21st Century Communications and Video Accessibility Act will be signed into LAW!!!

NAD Applauds Passage of 21st Century Communications and Video Accessibility Act

On Friday, October 8, President Barack Obama will sign the Twenty-First Century Communications and Video Accessibility Act of 2010 into law and deliver brief remarks on the impact of this law on individuals with disabilities. Bobbie Beth Scoggins, President of the National Association of the Deaf (NAD) with Chief Executive Officer Nancy Bloch and Law and Advocacy Director Rosaline Crawford will be on hand to witness this historic event at the White House, which will be streamed on whitehouse.org/live.

The NAD applauds Congress for passage of this landmark legislation will improve access to communication, television, and the Internet for people who are deaf, hard of hearing, late deafened and deaf-blind.

“The Twenty-First Century Communications and Video Accessibility Act is one of the most significant victories for our community since the Americans with Disabilities Act was signed 20 years ago. It will enable 36 million deaf and hard of hearing people to participate in the Internet age by ensuring captioning of television programs on the Internet, a closed caption button on television remote controls, hearing aid compatibility for Internet telephones, and communications equipment for individuals who are deaf-blind, and more,” said Bobbie Beth Scoggins, NAD President. “While we fell short in some areas, such as requiring web TV episodes distributed only on the Internet to be captioned, this is a step in the right direction to make
the web accessible. For many of us, the quality of our lives depend on an accessible Internet and we appreciate Congress’ recognition of this essential civil right.”

The passage of this Act culminates a legislative process that has involved congressional hearings, intensive discussions with various companies and trade associations, and extensive advocacy by the Coalition of Organizations for Accessible Technology (COAT) of which the NAD is a co-founder, leader, and steering committee member. COAT, a coalition of more than 300 organizational affiliates, promotes full access by people with disabilities to evolving high speed broadband, wireless and other Internet Protocol (IP) technologies. Other COAT co-founding organizations include the American Association of People with Disabilities, American Council of the Blind, American Foundation for the Blind, and Communication Service for the Deaf.

The Twenty-first Century Communications and Video Accessibility Act (S. 3304) will significantly increase accessibility for Americans with disabilities to the indispensable telecommunications technology tools of the 21st century by:

Making access to the Web possible through improved user interfaces for smart phones
Enabling Americans who are blind to enjoy TV more fully through audible descriptions of the on-screen action
Making TV program guides and selection menus accessible to people with vision loss
Providing Americans who are deaf the ability to watch new TV programs online with the captions included
Mandating that remote controls have a button or similar mechanism to easily access the closed captioning on broadcast and pay TV
Requiring that telephone equipment used to make calls over the Internet is compatible with hearing aids
For low-income Americans who are both deaf and blind, providing up to $10 million per year to purchase communications equipment to access the telephone system and the Internet so these individuals can more fully participate in society.
“This Act was achieved through bipartisan support.” said NAD President Scoggins. “The NAD looks forward to working with the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) on the rulemakings expected over the next several years to fulfill the requirements of the Act. With the continued support of our members we will ensure that the final regulations provide the access that deaf and hard of hearing people need.”

The NAD would like to recognize and thank a number of members who played a key role in moving the legislation forward. In the U.S. Senate, the bill was championed by Senator Pryor (D-AR), with the support of Senator Kerry (D-MA), Senator Rockefeller (D-WV), Senator Hutchison (R-TX), and Senator Ensign (R-NV).  In the U.S. House, it was authored and championed by Rep. Ed Markey (D-MA), with the support of Rep. Henry Waxman (D-CA), Rep. Rick Boucher (D-VA), Rep. Joe Barton (R-TX), Rep. Cliff Stearns (R-FL) and Rep. Jay Inslee (D-WA). In addition, the NAD would like to recognize AT&T, Verizon, USTelecom, and Windstream who provided early and staunch support for the legislation. Furthermore, the NAD would like to thank the COAT steering
committee representatives -- including NAD Law and Advocacy Director Rosaline Crawford -- who provided amazing dedication and commitment in shepherding this legislation through Congress.

Courtesy of NAD

American Disability Act (ADA): How far have we really come?

Today marks the 20th anniversary of American Disability Act (ADA). I congratulate everyone for all their hard work. It's truly an accomplishment.

However, I do wonder how far have we really come? Have we made a lot of progress or is it still all talks?

How many times have we heard or see this?

"Your disability isn't significant enough." 

"A number of Supreme Court cases (have) greatly weakened the law. Many cases have focused on the degree of an individual's disability, rather than whether discrimination took place." Often times people are being told, 'your disability isn't significant enough,' even though they need accommodations to work." "We have many, many strides to make. It hasn't solved everything for us, not by a long shot. But it certainly has made a dent in equal access." (Link 1)

"Since the ADA was passed, studies have shown that the unemployment rate remains very high for people with disabilities compared with people without disabilities, according to Disability Rights Director John Herrion of the state Division of Human Rights." " (Link 2)

"The biggest challenges that the state continues to face are old attitudes and stigma" (Link 3)

Lastly, many people are saying that ADA itself is simply outdated. The definition for "reasonable accommodations" are no longer acceptable. We have newer technology that have a much significant impact upon people with disabilities. Yet, they are rejected because they weren't simply stated or included in the ADA 20 years ago. (I.E. TTY over Videophone for the majority of Deaf population). 

What do you think? 
 

Finally, Captioning for Deaf and Hard of Hearing at Sports Venues!!!

Here is some exciting news for the Deaf and Hard of Hearing Community! Finally, I can go to a baseball stadium and enjoy Closed Captioning (CC) on the jumbo screen. Finally, I can go to Deaflympics and enjoy the CC. Finally, I can go to the Air & Space Museum and enjoy subtitles.

Debra Joyce, President of NJCaptions , and Jennifer Bonfilio, , President of Team Captioning, combined with more than 30 years of experience in providing captioning, have decided to work together and founded a new company, Coast 2 Coast Captioning… Coast 2 Coast Captioning will “provide Communication Access Realtime Technology (CART) and Open & Closed Captioning services to sports and entertainment stadiums, arenas, auditoriums, and other public venues, as well as meeting and conference centers nationwide.”

http://www.c2ccaptioning.com

"There has been a significant jump in the number of hard-of-hearing consumers who are requesting captioning." 

Coast 2 Coast Captioning works closely with organizations such as Association of Late-Deafened Adults (ALDA) and Hearing Loss Association of America (HLAA), to adhere to the parameters of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), which requires accessibility for deaf and hard-of-hearing individuals in public places, and to provide the best experience and optimal communication for public safety.

Superbowl, here I come!!!!! haha.

Deaf lost a job offer because school won't provide interpreters.

My friend asked me to keep this as discreet as possible. In order to  respect his wishes I will keep his name and the name of the organization private. My friend is a Deaf young man who recently graduated from college. He was offered a job by a school district in Pennsylvania. However, he was told he would have to provide his own interpreter.

Now, isn't that a violation of American Disability Act (ADA)? 

If I remember correctly, it doesn't matter if it is a public or a private school, they are still required to provide reasonable accommodations.

However, there are actually a few ways that a school or a company can be excused from being obligated to provide an  interpreter.

1) The organization can prove that they cannot afford the interpreter.
2) The company has less than 10-15 employees.
3) The school has a religious affiliation. (i.e. John Doe Christian Academy in the North Pole).

I believe that if they don't meet any of the above qualifications and they still refuse to provide an interpreter, you may be able to contact US Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC).

What are your thoughts? Anyone else have a similar problem?