[Libs-Or] INFORMATION Fwd: [District Dispatch] Senate Committee hears ‘equal access is equal opportunity’

[Diedre Conkling]

---------- Forwarded message ----------
From: <jterry at alawash.org>
Date: Thu, May 27, 2010 at 1:27 PM
Subject: [District Dispatch] Senate Committee hears ‘equal access is equal
opportunity’
To: district at ala.org


FULL POST: http://bit.ly/aj58O6
--
District Dispatch has posted a new item, 'Senate Committee hears ‘equal
access is equal opportunity’

At a hearing held yesterday, the U.S. Senate Commerce, Science and
Transportation Committee learned that one of the key ways to improve access
to
the Internet and technology for the deaf and blind is the interoperability
of
search engines and devices.

July 25th marks the 20th anniversary of the Americans with Disabilities Act
(ADA).  New legislation proposed by both the House and Senate would require
that technological barriers to access information be addressed just as the
ADA
mandated that physical barriers be dealt with.  Chairman Senator Kerry
(D-Mass)
noted that the market won’t address these access concerns without the force
of legislation and hoped that businesses would cooperate and make good faith
efforts to improve access.

Representative Markey (D-Mass) who sponsors the House bill (H.R. 6350 – the
“Twenty-first Century Communications and Video Accessibility Act”) said
that the “broadband plan was designed to provide a broadband future for all
Americans” and that delay in meeting the needs of the disabled was
“unacceptable.”

The Senate legislation (S. 3304 – Equal Access to 21st Century
Communications
Act)  was praised by the panelists representing the visually and hearing
impaired communities, the Coalition of Assistive Technology, and U.S. Army
Sgt.
Brian Pierce, an Iran war veteran who lost his sight and much of his hearing
due to a severe brain injury from an IAD blast.  Sgt. Pierce described his
frustration finding a cell phone that was accessible and the high level of
unemployed in the disabled community. Russell Harvard, a hearing impaired
actor, said that “equal access is equal opportunity.” He said that the
disabled community should not have to “drag behind” everyone else in access
to information and communications technology.

An archived webcast of the hearing is available at:
http://commerce.senate.gov/public/index.cfm?p=Hearings&ContentRecord_id=4c38a45b-a9f2-4458-a4d3-cb22c48714fd&ContentType_id=14f995b9-dfa5-407a-9d35-56cc7152a7ed&Group_id=b06c39af-e033-4cba-9221-de668ca1978a

You may view the latest post at
http://www.wo.ala.org/districtdispatch/?p=49

You received this e-mail because you asked to be notified when new updates
are
posted.
Best regards,
Jacob Roberts
jroberts at alawash.org



-- 
Diedre Conkling
Lincoln County Library District
P.O. Box 2027
Newport, OR  97365
Work phone & fax:  541-265-3066
Work email:  diedre at beachbooks.org
Home email:  diedre08 at gmail.com
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