Web accessibility is crucial. Making room for everyone is what gets me up in the morning.
But the path isn't always smooth sailing. I've seen a lot of times how frustrations boil over into heated online debates. And I try to stay away from them. These concerns that such and such falls short on accessibility are certainly valid.
I don't think that constant criticism drives meaningful change.
I get it. Most of us are tired of saying the same things over and over again.
We're tired that not everyone hears us. But rarely has something important been heard when it was first said. We're tired that not many care. But we can't really expect everyone to care about the same things we do, no matter how important they are.
We're tired of saying we need to train designers and developers about accessibility standards. We're tired of saying companies need to be proactive and seek input from users with diverse abilities.
We've gotten used to pointing fingers. I think that's because a lot of the times we feel like that's the only thing we have left.
I hope it isn't. I'd rather we keep sharing success stories of inclusive design and offering practical solutions to those who care. Progress comes through collaboration, not confrontation.
Rather than point fingers, I'd rather highlight and celebrate companies and websites that excel in accessibility. Positive incentives over negativity.
I'd love to see more collaborative workshops on accessibility, where product teams and users with disabilities work together. I want to seem more open source solutions that really move the needle for accessibility.
How can we encourage companies to set up ongoing user testing with people with disabilities? How can we create spaces for constructive dialogue between users, developers and companies to address accessibility issues collaboratively?
These are better questions than "why didn't you add alt text to your image?"