15 research outputs found
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.