A revaluation of the cultural dimension of disability policy in the European Union: The impact of digitization and web accessibility

Reflecting the commitments undertaken by the EU through the conclusion of the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (UNCRPD), the European Disability Strategy 2010–2020 not only gives a prominent position to accessibility, broadly interpreted, but also suggests an examination of the obligations for access to cultural goods and services. The European Disability Strategy 2010–2020 expressly acknowledges that EU action will support national activities to make sports, leisure, cultural and recreational organizations and activities accessible, and use the possibilities for copyright exceptions in the Directive 2001/29/EC (Infosoc Directive). This article discusses to what extent the EU has realized the principle of accessibility and the right to access cultural goods and services envisaged in the UNCRPD. Previous research has yet to explore how web accessibility and digitization interact with the cultural dimension of disability policy in the European Union. This examination attempts to fill this gap by discussing to what extent the European Union has put this cultural dimension into effect and how web accessibility policies and the digitization of cultural materials influence these efforts

THE NORMALITY OF DOING THINGS DIFFERENTLY: BODIES, SPACES AND DISABILITY GEOGRAPHY

This paper reflects upon treatments of the body in both disability studies and disability geography, taking seriously the impaired body in its immediate materiality: in its flesh-and-boneness, in how it deals with everyday practices in everyday places, as this embodiment is 'voiced' by disabled people themselves. The paper discusses Hansen's in-depth research with a sample of disabled women living in Scotland and Canada, teasing out their experiences of coping with impaired bodies in non-disabled spaces. Particular attention is given to their own bodily practices, complete with 'timings and spacings' that may depart from what is supposedly normal for non-disabled people. It is also shown how these women resist ableist accommodations that entail both modifying external spaces and 'correcting' bodily differences. The paper concludes by identifying a key but neglected step within the 'politics' of better accommodating disabled people: namely, shifting the emphasis from (aiding disabled people in) "doing things 'normally'" to (underlining for all of 'us') simply the "normality of doing things differently". Copyright (c) 2007 by the Royal Dutch Geographical Society KNAG.