People in the News

This topic includes articles about people in the digital accessibility or disability rights communities.

Paul Longmore: Giant of the Disability Rights Movement (1946 – 2010)

Posted on Updated on March 10, 2016
The international disability rights movement lost a brilliant leader and great thinker on August 9, 2010 when Paul Longmore died unexpectedly at his home in San Francisco. Longmore, Professor of History and Director of the Institute on Disability at San Francisco State University was a thoughtful and visionary scholar, disability studies pioneer, fierce advocate and role model to many. Read more… Paul Longmore: Giant of the Disability Rights Movement (1946 – 2010)

Today’s Tactile Keypad: Thank you John E. Karlin

Posted on Updated on March 10, 2016
Tactile keypads are a crucial element of accessibility for people who are blind and visually impaired. Apple has shown that a touchscreen can be made accessible, but in the absence of tactile keypads, significant swaths of today’s technology and electronics are off limits to persons who cannot see, and to others with disabilities as well. As with many ubiquitous elements of the built environment, we often fail to appreciate the origins — or the originator– of the technology we rely on. This is certainly true for tactile keypads, or it was true until a fascinating obituary of John E. Karlin published in the New York Times earlier this month. Mr. Karlin deserves to be called the father of today’s tactile keypad. Read more… Today’s Tactile Keypad: Thank you John E. Karlin

Remembering Harriet McBryde Johnson

Posted on Updated on March 10, 2016
Five years ago today, on June 4, 2008, disability rights activist Harriet McBryde Johnson died unexpectedly at her home in South Carolina at age 50. With today’s 24/7 news cycle and a deluge of information each morning when we turn on our computers, is it easy to forget to stop and remember people no longer with us. Harriet McBryde Johnson is worth remembering. Five years after her untimely death, her activism and writings, her commitment to social justice, and her willingness to confront bigotry wherever she found it serves as a continuing reminder of the core values and goals of today’s disability civil rights movement. Read more… Remembering Harriet McBryde Johnson

California Council of the Blind President Honored by State Bar

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Congratulations are in order for friend and colleague, Jeff Thom. Jeff, the president of the California Council of the Blind, has been chosen as the “2008 Public Lawyer of the Year” by the State Bar of California. Jeff is a 1978 graduate of Stanford Law School and a lawyer in the Office of Legislative Counsel in Sacramento, California. According to the State Bar website, Jeff was selected for this honor because of his “distinguished record of professional service to the public, both as an attorney and as a civic leader.” Read more… California Council of the Blind President Honored by State Bar

John Slatin Fund Accessibility Project

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John Slatin was a well loved and highly respected accessibility advocate and University of Texas professor who died at the end of March after a courageous three year battle with leukemia. In John’s obituary in the Austin American-Statesman, one of John’s graduate students was quoted as saying “It was striking that even after blindness and leukemia, he was still happy.” John’s kindness and contributions to the field of web accessibility have motivated John’s friends and colleagues to develop The John Slatin Fund Accessibility Project to match accessibility experts with firms and companies that would like a brief review of their site for accessibility. In return, the site owner is asked to contribute a minimum of $500 to The John Slatin Fund. Read more… John Slatin Fund Accessibility Project