A COMPARISON of ADA, IDEA, and Section 504

With July 26th, being the Anniversary of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), we wanted to share a comparison of the ADA, the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA), and Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973. {*reposted from July 2015}

The following information is posted from The Disability Rights Education and Defense Fund (DREDF). Please visit DREDF for a large amount of information on Disability related issues. 

A COMPARISON of ADA, IDEA, and Section 504

The Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 (ADA), the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA), and Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 represent three attempts to improve the living conditions of those with disabilities. Type and purpose
ADA	IDEA	504
A civil rights law to prohibit discrimination solely on the basis of disability in employment, public services, and accommodations.	An education act to provide federal financial assistance to State and local education agencies to guarantee special education and related services to eligible children with disabilities.	A civil rights law to prohibit discrimination on the basis of disability in programs and activities, public and private, that receive federal financial assistance.

Who is protected?
ADA	IDEA	504
Any individual with a disability who: (1) has a physical or mental impairment that substantially limits one or more life activities; or (2) has a record of such impairment; or (3) is regarded as having such an impairment.  Further, the person must be qualified for the program, service, or job.	Children ages 3-21 who are determined by a multidisciplinary team to be eligible within one or more of 13 specific disability categories and who need special education and related services.  Categories include autism, deafness, deaf-blindness, hearing impairments, mental retardation, multiple disabilities, orthopedic impairments, other health impairments, serious emotional disturbance, specific learning disabilities, speech or language impairments, traumatic brain injury, and visual impairments	Any person who (1) has a physical or mental impairment that substantially limits one or more major life activities, (2) has a record of such an impairment or (3) is regarded as having such an impairment.  Major life activities include walking, seeing, hearing, speaking, breathing, learning, working, caring for oneself, and performing manual tasks.

Provides for a free, appropriate public education (FAPE)
ADA	IDEA	504
Not directly.  However, (1) ADA protections apply to nonsectarian private schools, but not to organization or private schools, or entities controlled by religious organization; (2) ADA provided additional protection in combination with actions brought under Section 504.  Reasonable accommodations are required for eligible students with a disability to perform essential functions of the job.  This applies to any part of the special education program that may be community-based and involve job training/placement.	Yes.  A FAPE is defined to mean special education and related services.  Special education means "specially designed instruction at no cost to the parents, to meet the unique needs of the child with a disability..."  Related services are provided if students, require them in order to benefit from specially designed instruction.  States are required to ensure the provision of "full educational opportunity" to all children with disabilities.  IDEA requires the development of an Individualized Education Program (IEP) document with specific content and a required number of participants at an IEP meeting.	Yes.  An "appropriate" education means an education comparable to that provided to students without disabilities.  This may be defined as regular or special education services.  Students can receive related services under Section 504 even if they are not provided any special education.  Section 504 does require development of a plan, although this written document is not mandated.  The Individualized Education Program (IEP) of IDEA may be used for the Section 504 written plan.  Many experts recommend that a group of persons knowledgeable about the students convene and specify the agreed-upon services.

Funding to implement services
ADA	IDEA	504
No, but limited tax credits may be available for removing architectural or transportation barriers.  Also, many federal agencies provide grant funds to support training and to provide technical assistance to public and private institutions.	Yes.  IDEA provides federal funds under Parts B and C to assist states and local education agencies in meeting IDEA requirements to serve infants, toddlers and youth with disabilities.	No.  State and local jurisdictions have responsibility.  IDEA funds may not be used to serve children found eligible under Section 504.

Procedural safeguards
ADA	IDEA	504
The ADA does not specify procedural safeguards related to special education; it does detail the administrative requirements complaint procedures, and consequences for noncompliance related to both services and employment.	IDEA requires written notice to parents regarding identification, evaluation, and/or placement.  Further, written notice must be made prior to any change in placement.  The Act delineates the required components of the written notices.	Section 504 requires notice to parents regarding identification, evaluation and/or placements.  Written notice is recommended.  Notice must be made only before a "significant change" in placement.  Following IDEA procedural safeguards is one way to comply with Section 504 mandates.

Evaluation and placement procedures
ADA	IDEA	504
The ADA does not specify evaluation and placement procedures: it does specify provision of reasonable accommodations for eligible activities and settings.  Reasonable accommodations may include, but are not limited to, redesigning equipment, assigning aides, providing written communication in alternative formats, modifying tests, redesigning services to accessibility locations, altering existing facilities, and building new facilities.	A comprehensive evaluation is required.  A multidisciplinary team evaluates the child, and parental consent is required before evaluation.  IDEA requires that reevaluations be conducted at least every 3 years.  For evaluation and placement decisions, IDEA requires that more than one single procedure or information source be used; that information from all sources be documented and carefully considered; that the eligibility decision be made by a group of persons who know about the student, the evaluation data, and placement options; and that the placement decision serves the student in the least restrictive environment.  An IEP meeting is required before any change in placement.	Unlike IDEA, Section 504 requires only notice, not consent, for evaluation.  It is recommended that district obtain parental consent.  Like IDEA evaluation and placement procedures under Section 504 require that information be obtained from a variety of sources of the area of concern; that all data are documented and considered; and that decisions are made by a group of persons knowledgeable about the student, evaluation data, and placement options.  Section 504 requires that students be educated with their non-disabled peers to the maximum extent appropriate.  Section 504 does not require a meeting for any change in placement.

Due process
ADA	IDEA	504
The ADA does not delineate specific due process procedures.  People with disabilities have the same remedies that are available under the Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, as amended in 1991.  Thus, individuals who are discriminated against may file a complaint with the relevant federal agency or due in federal court.  Enforcement agencies encourage informal mediation and voluntary compliance.	IDEA delineates specific requirements for local education agencies to provide impartial hearings for parents who disagree with the identification, evaluation, or placement of a child.	Section 504 requires local education agencies to provide impartial hearings for parents who disagree with the identification, evaluation, or placement of a student.  It requires that parents have an opportunity to participate in the hearing process and to be represented by counsel.  Beyond this, due process details are left to the discretion of the local education agency.  It is recommended that districts develop policy guidelines and procedures.

Disability Rights Fund and the Disability Rights Advocacy Fund 2016 Annual Report 'NOTHING WITHOUT US'

The Disability Right Fund(DRF) and the Disability Rights Advocacy Fund (DRAF) published 2016 annual report. The title is 'NOTHING WITHOUT US' which ensuring that people with disabilities around the world are leading struggles for rights and inclusion.

DRF and the DRAF have integrated the Sustainable Development Goals into our Strategic Plan and grantmaking so that Disabled Persons' Organizations have the financial and technical resources needed to use the CRPD to advance disability-inclusive development, and ensure no one is left behind.

For more information, please visit :http://disabilityrightsfund.org/

To View 2016 annual reports click here :

http://disabilityrightsfund.org/wp-content/uploads/2015/12/2016_DRF_DFRAF_AnnualReport.pdf

The Beauty of the Americans with Disabilities Act; article by Susan Henderson, Executive Director DREDF

wonderful heartfelt article shared from Disability.gov. in celebration the 25th Anniversary of the Americans with Disabilities Act on July 26, 2015.

By Guest Blogger Susan Henderson, Executive Director, Disability Rights Education & Defense Fund

In the spring of 1977, I took a quarter off from college, quit my job and, with my best friend, bought a 1966 VW camper van to explore the United States. Before we left, we spent a warm April day (California was in a drought and Jerry Brown was governor, how odd!) practicing the manual shift on the hills of San Francisco. We figured that if we could manage the hills of San Francisco in the bus, we could manage it anywhere.

As we drove into the Civic Center, we noticed a protest – not a rare occurrence in the Bay Area, but this protest was unique because the people protesting were people with disabilities. I admit that as an abled-bodied teenager, I didn’t have a clue what the protest was about, but learned from the local news that protestors were demanding that the Carter Administration issue regulations implementing Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973. It made perfect sense and it opened my eyes to disability discrimination.

Fast forward 38 years to 2015 and we’re celebrating the 25th anniversary of the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 (ADA), the glorious result of the disability community’s historic campaign to expand the protections of Section 504. In those intervening years, I acquired a disability and had the incredible fortune to go to work at the Disability Rights Education & Defense Fund (DREDF), first as its administrative director and now as the executive director.

DREDF was instrumental in the passage of the ADA: with Pat Wright as the leading political strategist, Arlene Mayerson drafting language and providing legal consultation to members of Congress, Marilyn Golden organizing people with disabilities nationwide and Mary Lou Breslin providing the vision, intellect and historical context to DREDF’s work. In 2014, Senator Tom Harkin said about DREDF, “No group has been more instrumental in advancing the cause of civil rights for all people with disabilities than DREDF.”*

The ADA is beautiful – what it has accomplished is spectacular. It has led to the removal of many, many architectural barriers, more accessible public transportation, made it illegal to discriminate against people with disabilities in employment, an increasingly accessible Internet, more equitable delivery of health care and much, much more.

I have savored the ADA’s impact on our social consciousness in small but beautiful personal moments:

• In 2005, when my oldest son called from college to tell me that after an overhaul of the online game Star Wars Galaxies wiped out the ability of many players with limited dexterity to use “keyboard-only” commands, there was a major outcry on player forums to correct the programming so that players weren’t excluded. Players with and without disabilities recognized that the upgrade had usurped the perhaps inadvertent, though nonetheless universal design of the original game. I was so happy about the gamer community understanding access and inclusion that I barely even questioned my son about why he was spending time playing video games when he probably should have been studying.
• In 2010, when my stepmother called to say that it dawned on her that she could insist (gently, according to her) that Amtrak allow my father to sit on the lower level of the train because he was no longer able to safely climb or descend the stairs.
• In 2012, when my youngest son, who was working at a movie theater, called to tell me that, after he heard that the chain’s management had moved The Sessions, a film based on Mark O’Brien’s essay, “On Seeing a Sex Surrogate,” from the first floor accessible theater to an inaccessible upstairs theater, he had called the Los Angeles headquarters to let them know that they were moving the film back to the first floor theater.

It is beautiful that the ADA has been used to:

• Enshrine the rights of people with disabilities to receive public support and services in the community, instead of institutions, pursuant to the Olmstead decision;
• Keep families together (see the National Council on Disability’s 2012 report on the rights of parents with disabilities, Rocking the Cradle);
• Ensure that online streaming videos (see the case that DREDF brought against Netflix) include captions so that people who are deaf and have hearing loss also benefit from and enjoy their content;
• Promote inclusion in school for children with diabetes through a state supreme court opinion that determined that trained personnel or volunteers who do not hold a medical license can administer insulin in schools. The decision also means that people can remain in their homes and have attendants administer medication, instead of being driven into a medical facility; and
• Spark the enactment of disability rights laws around the world, and be a model for the U.N. Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities.

There are so many more remarkable outcomes that I could add to this short list (I invite you to add to the list by using the Comments feature) and undoubtedly there are more to come. I am excited to see how disability rights advocates and activists, in the tradition of the 504 protestors and everyone who worked to pass, implement and enforce the ADA, will use it to expose and eliminate lingering discrimination, increase opportunity and secure equality for people with disabilities.

About the Guest Blogger :
Susan Henderson joined Disability Rights Education & Defense Fund (DREDF) in 1997. In addition to her executive director responsibilities, she directs DREDF’s Parent Training & Information Center, which is funded by the U.S. Department of Education. In 2004, she started DREDF’s Foster Youth Resources for Education (FYRE) project to heighten awareness and protect the rights of children with disabilities in the child welfare system. In 2007, she established DREDF’s Disability and Media Alliance Project (D-MAP) to address the misinformed disability coverage that undermines public policy and legal advances to coverage that raises public awareness and helps to end disability discrimination. She works internationally with other disability-led organizations to conduct workshops on disability and human rights in Bahrain, Columbia, Guam, Japan, Jordan, Kenya, Kuwait, Tanzania, Uganda and Vietnam.
Susan worked for 13 years as part of the cross-disability team that planned, designed and constructed the Ed Roberts Campus (ERC), a universally-designed building in Berkeley, Calif. She currently serves as the president of the ERC board. She has worked in non-profit and law firm management and finance for over 20 years and has an MBA and a BA in Anthropology.

* Senator Tom Harkin, Remarks at an Event Honoring the History and Legacy of Senator Tom Harkin and Representative George Miller, Berkeley, California, September 3, 2014.

https://usodep.blogs.govdelivery.com/2015/07/10/the-beauty-of-the-americans-with-disabilities-act/

# originally posted July 2015

Senator Ted Kennedy Discusses Disability Civil Rights, and the passage of the ADA - video (cc)

Senator Edward M. Kennedy was a Champion of, Advocate for, and strong supporter for The Americans with Disabilities Act. Senator Kennedy reflects on the signing of The Americans with Disabilities Act.

The Disability Rights Education & Defense Fund (DREDF) produced, and posted the videos on YouTube Aug. 27, 2009.

For information, and resources of the ADA, plus much more, visit: 

Disability Rights Education & Defense Fund (DREDF)

Section 504, The First Federal Civil Rights Law Protecting People with Disabilities: Documentary (open caption)

An Award-winning 18-minute documentary video, which captures the drama and emotions of the historic civil rights demonstration of people with disabilities in 1977, resulting in the signing of the 504 Regulations, the first Federal Civil Rights Law protecting people with disabilities. Includes contemporary news footage and news interviews with participants and demonstration leaders. Available in open caption, audio descriptive and standard formats.

The YouTube videos are published by Disability Rights Education & Defense Fund channel.

For more information and resources, please visit Disability Rights Education & Defense Fund (DREFT): https://dredf.org/

Webinar May 1st: Risk of major ADA Amendments Soon “ADA Education and Reform Act of 2017”

H.R. 620 and similar ADA notification bills are gaining more steam in Congress than ever before. If any passes, it will have a devastating impact on the ADA by denying people with disabilities the power to enforce some of its requirements. 

DREDF and other disability rights advocates are working—and need others to join them!—to counter the business lobby, which wants to make it much more difficult to attain accessibility when businesses such as stores, restaurants, hotels, etc. disregard their ADA responsibilities. 

What would H.R. 620 (ADA Education and Reform Act of 2017) do?

• Remove any incentive for voluntary compliance.
• Require a person with a disability who encounters an access barrier to send a letter detailing the exact ADA provisions that are being violated.
• Reward non-compliance by allowing businesses generous additional timelines, even though the ADA's reasonable requirements are already over 25 years old!
• Perpetuate the myth that the ADA benefits unscrupulous lawyers rather than the truth: that the ADA is the most important civil rights law for people with disabilities.
• Ignores the extensive, free educational resources already available today to any business on how to comply with the law.

Join us for this webinar to learn more about what is happening with this quickly-moving bill, and how you and others can get involved.

WHEN: Monday, May 1, 2017

TIME: 2:00 PM Eastern Time Zone

REGISTER: HERE

Speaker:

Marilyn Golden

Jennifer Mathis

SOURCE: ADA National Network

Day of Mourning Vigils- Remembering People with Disabilities Murdered by Caregivers on March 1st 2017

In the past five years, over four hundred people with disabilities have been murdered by their parents, relatives or caregivers.

On Wednesday, March 1st, the disability community will gather across the nation to remember these disabled victims of filicide – disabled people murdered by their family members or caregivers.

In the year since our last vigil, our community has lost 100 more people to filicide. These are just the cases that we are aware of - since we began monitoring this issue, we learn about more murders every week. We read the victims’ names, see their photographs, and gather what information we can about their lives. The criminal justice system has continued to give lighter sentences to parents and caregivers who murder disabled children. And we have seen both news and entertainment media continue to portray these murders in a sympathetic light.

We hold the Day of Mourning vigils to draw attention to these injustices, to commemorate the lives of victims, and demand justice and equal protection under the law for all people with disabilities. 

This would not be possible without the vital work of our volunteer site coordinators. Click here to learn about what site coordinators do, or to sign up to lead a vigil.

For the last six years, Autistic Self Advocacy Network , ADAPT, Not Dead Yet, the National Council on Independent Living, the Disability Rights Education & Defense Fund, the American Association of People with Disabilities, and other disability rights organizations have come together to send a clear message that disability is not a justification for violence. We’ll be at our local vigils on Wednesday, March 1st - and we hope to see you there.

If you're interested in leading a vigil in your area, please sign up to be a Day of Mourning vigil site coordinator.

SOURCE: Press Release - Autistic Self Advocacy Network

# As more information becomes available, we will update info.

Another Walmart settlement, disability-rights suit over payment machines

Walmart has agreed to settle a disability-rights suit by installing equipment in its California stores that will enable people in wheelchairs to read the screens at checkout display terminals and make credit-card purchases on their own.
Article from SFGate, by Bob Egelko | Jan. 9, 2017
Walmart has agreed to settle a disability-rights suit by installing equipment in its stores in California that will enable people in wheelchairs to read the screens at checkout display terminals and make credit card purchases on their own.

The proposed settlement in federal court in San Francisco is intended to make the point-of-sale machines at Walmart’s more than 200 stores in the state accessible to the more than 300,000 Californians who use wheelchairs or motorized scooters.

Full details have not been disclosed, but a person involved in the case said Monday that the company had agreed to install a device that would accommodate disabled customers.

Point-of-sale machines allow customers to use credit or debit cards to make purchases. The machines require customers to view the screens to check the transaction, enter their personal identification number or submit their signature, and approve the sale.

The suit, filed by disability-rights groups in July 2012, said the machines at many Walmart stores were positioned so high that disabled customers had to “stretch and strain” to see the screens, or simply were unable to view them from their wheelchairs.

“I can’t reach the payment device on my own, read the display screen, enter my PIN or sign the screen to complete the transaction,” one plaintiff, Janet Brown of Pittsburg, said in a statement released by her lawyers when the case was filed. “I have to share my private PIN with the cashier, which I hate to do.”

The disability groups said lower-mounted, adjustable terminals were readily available and were already being used by some Walmart stores and by many competitors. The Disability Rights Education and Defense Fund in Berkeley said it complained about the situation to Walmart in 2005 and requested settlement negotiations, but the company declined.

The lawsuit accused the world’s largest retailer of violating the Americans with Disabilities Act. Further details of the proposed settlement, including the timetable for installing the new equipment, may be released at a hearing scheduled for Jan. 20.

http://www.sfgate.com/news/article/Walmart-settles-disability-rights-suit-over-10845642.php
Bob Egelko is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. Email: begelko@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @egelko

ACTION ALERT: DAY TO PROTECT HEALTH CARE on JANUARY 11, 2017

From DREDF*: DAY TO PROTECT HEALTH CARE

Congressional leaders have declared that one of their first goals in the new Congress is to repeal the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (ACA or Obamacare) and "replace" it. While Congress has passed many bills to repeal the ACA in the past, it was clear that President Obama would veto them. But this is not the case with President-elect Donald Trump who says he will sign an ACA repeal bill.

The Senate is planning to pass a budget that will begin the process of repealing the ACA as soon as JANUARY 11. This is the first step in taking health care away before having a plan to replace it.

We must educate our Members of Congress before January 11th about why the ACA is so important to everyone, but especially to people with disabilities.

There are key provisions in the ACA that support the health and well-being of people with disabilities that we cannot lose:

---Because of the ACA, health insurers can't deny you health insurance if you have a disability or chronic condition.

---Because of the ACA, there aren't arbitrary financial limits to how much health care you can get in a year or in your lifetime.

---Because of the ACA, more people with disabilities receive supports and live in the community, not institutions.

---Because of the ACA, 20 million adults and children now have health insurance, thanks to the Medicaid Expansion and the health insurance subsidies, and millions of young adults have been able to stay on their parents' health insurance.

---Because of the ACA, health insurers started to provide people with the services they need-like mental health services and rehabilitation and habilitation services and devices

There are countless other provisions in the ACA that are important to people with disabilities. The ACA has unquestionably improved access to care for people with disabilities and chronic conditions to help them live healthy, independent, and fulfilling lives.

TAKE ACTION

Call the US Capitol Switchboard at (202) 224-3121 and ask to be connected to your Senator's office. Tell your Senator:

    Vote NO on the budget package that leads to eliminating the Affordable Care Act.

    People with disabilities need access to comprehensive and affordable health care.

    Congress must include the disability community in any discussion about repeal and replace to ensure that any changes meet the needs of people with disabilities.

    

SAMPLE TWEETS TO YOUR SENATORS

Vote NO on Senate budget. People w #disabilities rely on #ACA for comprehensive health care http://bit.ly/2jjeZau

Affordable Care Act = affordable comprehensive care for people w/#disabilities. Don't repeal it! http://bit.ly/2jjeZau

11 million at risk of losing Medicaid if #ACA repealed http://kaiserf.am/2gacF4c

TAKE ACTION ONLINE

Access Living* (Chicago CIL) has set up an e-mail action alert at this link to build upon DREDF's alert. Even if you have already taken action, please do it again!

* DREDF - Disability Rights Education and Defense Fund

* Access Living - Chicago Center for Independent Living 

Uber's Attempt of Services for People with Disabilities Still Lack Actual Vehicles

Sunday Parker can't catch an Uber in a neighborhood where they typically show up within five minutes.

article by Heather Kelly, for CNN Money | May 3, 2016
The 24-year-old works at a tech company in San Francisco and lives in Oakland. Born with Spinal Muscular Atrophy, Parker uses a power wheelchair to get around. She either takes public transit or needs a special vehicle with a hydraulic lift.

Uber has an option that Parker could use. Called UberWAV, it offers vehicles especially for people with power wheelchairs or motorized scooters. There's only one problem: the service is a ghost town. There are almost never any UberWAV cars available in San Francisco.

WAV, offered in at least eight U.S. cities, is one of two services Uber touts for riders with disabilities. The other, UberASSIST, offers regular cars with drivers who have received additional training on helping seniors and people with disabilities, like putting a collapsible wheelchair in the trunk. ASSIST is available in at least 13 U.S. cities.

We checked availability for both services in three cities at various times during the day.

In San Francisco, where Uber is based, there were consistently zero UberWAV vehicles available. In Los Angeles and Portland, there were zero to one cars available, with wait times between 25 and 45 minutes.

There were slightly more UberASSIST cars on the road. In San Francisco and Los Angeles, there was sometimes one ASSIST car available, though with significantly longer wait times than UberX, the traditional service. Portland was much better staffed, with two to four cars available.

New York uses taxis to fulfill this service, although they're still called through the Uber app. This seems to increase availability. The variations between cities might be due to the different pilot programs Uber is testing.

ASSIST and WAV were added as Uber options over the last 18 months. The company has been sued for discrimination. In one lawsuit, the California chapter of the National Federation of the Blind sued Uber for refusing to pick up riders with service dogs. One driver allegedly put a service dog in the trunk.

The Americans' with Disabilities Act requires transportation companies to offer equal access to all riders. Even though Uber offers ASSIST as a separate service, the company now requires all drivers to comply with ADA rules and and pick up passengers who are blind, have collapsible wheelchairs, or use a service animal.

The lack of ASSIST drivers might be due to a lack of incentives. They are not paid extra to go through training, and the fee for picking up UberASSIST rides is the same as UberX. On one popular Uber forum, some drivers expressed concerns about increased liability and risks if they picked up disabled passengers.

For activists, it's not just the lack of cars that's a problem. It's the very idea of creating a separate service with longer wait times to handle their business.

"Establishing a service where a subset of drivers are trained sends a very strong message that it is acceptable for the others to refuse that service," said Marilyn Golden, a senior policy analyst at the Disability Rights Education & Defense Fund. "Each time they do, they are violating the ADA."

"I personally find it very offensive," said disabilities rights activist Carol Tyson. "To me, that is the kind of service that should be provided across the board."

Getting vehicles with hydraulic lifts is especially tricky. Depending on the city, Uber is workingwith local taxi companies that already have wheelchair-accessible cars on the road, third-party paratransit companies, and individual drivers who have their own accessible vehicles. In Seattle, someone requesting a WAV will get a phone number to call as part of a city-run service that Uber contributes to.

The company acknowledges that it's a work in progress.

"Uber's technology has expanded access to reliable transportation options for all riders, including those with disabilities. While there is certainly more work to be done, we are working hard to make it easier for people to get from A to B at the push of a button," said an Uber spokesperson.

Uber competitor Lyft also says all drivers must reasonably accommodate people with disabilities, including loading folding wheelchairs and allowing service animals. For passengers who require paratransit vehicles, the app usually connects riders with third-party providers.

Many seniors and people with disabilities who rely on alternative transportation still hope ride-hailing services can improve their lives.

"Uber has the unique opportunity to solve these problems and really create a positive change for some of the most vulnerable citizens," said Parker. "I'm not a 'taxi' advocate, I do think the industry needs a shake up, but I refuse to accept a solution that marginalizes an entire minority."

http://money.cnn.com/2016/05/02/technology/uber-access/index.html

Agreement Reached to Make Closed Captions Available on In-Flight Entertainment Systems

from a Press Release on January 26, 2016

The National Association of the Deaf (NAD)

NAD and Gogo LLC Agree to Make Closed Captions Available on In-Flight Entertainment Systems
Deaf and hard of hearing airline passengers will soon have closed captioned, on-demand in-flight entertainment videos. The National Association of the Deaf (NAD), a non-profit civil rights organization of, by, and for deaf and hard of hearing individuals, and Gogo LLC, the global leader in providing broadband connectivity solutions and wireless entertainment to the aviation industry, have reached a historic agreement for Gogo to make closed captioning available for 100 percent of programming content sourced by Gogo and streamed through its on-demand in-flight entertainment service, Gogo Vision.

This is the first agreement of its kind with an in-flight entertainment company, and is the result of the parties’ mutual intent to increase access for people who are deaf and hard of hearing to movies and television that are viewed in flight on U.S. domestic flights.  Passengers using their own personal Wi-Fi enabled devices can access a Gogo Vision server located on aircraft of certain airlines that contain an extensive library of movies and television shows.

Under the agreement, Gogo has now added technology that will enable customers to have the option to display closed captions for content with closed captions sourced by Gogo; Gogo has also begun sourcing new content with closed captions where available; and Gogo will replace all of its existing sourced content with content that has closed captions through a phase-in process that will be completed by June 30, 2017.  All captions will be consistent with Federal Communications Commission standards for completeness, accuracy, synchronicity, and placement.

“This is a monumental step in making in-flight entertainment accessible to the 48 million deaf and hard of hearing people in the United States alone,” said Howard Rosenblum, CEO of the NAD, of the agreement.  “Personalized in-flight entertainment has made air travel exciting again.  The ability to access and watch an extensive library of movies or television shows helps pass the time on long flights.  The NAD is thus thrilled by Gogo’s decision to make the in-flight entertainment experience equally accessible to deaf and hard of hearing passengers.”

“We are excited to work with NAD to offer Gogo Vision’s entire library of movies and TV sourced by Gogo to passengers who are deaf and hard of hearing,” said Ash ElDifrawi, Gogo’s chief commercial officer.  “Watching movies on a passenger’s own device has become a very popular product for Gogo and we are excited to provide access to this product to the deaf and hard of hearing.”

“In-flight entertainment systems can be designed to accommodate captioning in a variety of ways similar to what is available on home television sets,” said Arlene Mayerson, Disability Rights Education and Defense Fund, Inc.’s Directing Attorney, who represents the NAD.  “Gogo’s actions and commitment demonstrate its dedication to providing accessible in-flight entertainment systems.  DREDF urges other in-flight entertainment providers to follow Gogo’s pioneering example.”

“By seeking to ensure 100% closed captions on all of its streaming titles, Gogo has demonstrated that it is an industry leader, setting the standards for in-flight entertainment,” said Julie Wilensky, the Director of the California office of the Civil Rights Education and Enforcement Center, which also represents the NAD.

###

National Association of the Deaf (NAD)
The National Association of the Deaf (NAD) is the nation’s premier civil rights organization of, by and for deaf and hard of hearing individuals in the United States of America. NAD represents the estimated 48 million Americans who are deaf or hard of hearing and is based in Silver Spring, Maryland. 

Disability Rights Education & Defense Fund, Inc. (DREDF)
Founded in 1979 by people with disabilities and parents of children with disabilities, the Disability Rights Education & Defense Fund (DREDF) is a national law and policy center based in Berkeley, California and is dedicated to protecting and advancing the civil rights of people with disabilities. 

Civil Rights Education and Enforcement Center (CREEC)

The Civil Rights Education and Enforcement Center (CREEC) is a membership organization whose goal is ensuring that everyone can fully and independently participate in our nation’s civil life without discrimination based on race, gender, disability, religion, national origin, sexual orientation, or gender identity. CREEC has offices in Denver, Colorado and Berkeley, California. 

https://nad.org/news/2016/1/nad-and-gogo-llc-agree-make-closed-captions-available-flight-entertainment-systems

Amazon Agrees To Deal with Consumers Who Are Deaf For More Captioning on Amazon Video

from a Press Release | Oct 14, 2015

The National Association of the Deaf (NAD), a non-profit civil rights organization of, by, and for deaf and hard of hearing individuals, and Amazon.com, a leading online streaming entertainment provider, have reached an agreement that will extend Amazon’s ongoing captioning even deeper into its back catalog of TV shows and movies streamed through its on-demand entertainment service, Amazon Video.

The agreement reflects the NAD’s and Amazon’s shared goal of  increasing access for people who are deaf and hard of hearing to movies and television shows that are streamed online.  Amazon has already captioned 100% of its offerings on Prime Video, and under the agreement, Amazon is promising to continue to do so.  This commitment will ensure continued access to tens of thousands of movies and television episodes, including Emmy and Golden Globe -winning Amazon Original Series like Transparent and Tumbleleaf, as well as primetime favorites like The Sopranos and Downton Abbey.  New movies and television shows added to Prime Video (including new Amazon Originals like Red Oaks) will also contain closed captions upon listing. 

In addition, the agreement builds on Amazon’s efforts to expand captions deep into its vast catalog of movies and televisions available for rent or sale.  Amazon already has captions on the vast majority of those titles; the agreement will add captions to titles that haven’t been provided by content owners and will result in more than 190,000 titles made available with closed captions in Amazon’s catalog. Specifically, Amazon has already ensured that captions are available on over 85% of its video content that has been viewed more than 10 times in the past 90 days.  By December 31, 2015, Amazon will caption at least 90% of such video content, and by December 31, 2016, Amazon will caption 100% of that content.  All captions will be consistent with Federal Communications Commission standards for completeness, accuracy, synchronicity, and placement.  

“This is an enormous step in making online entertainment accessible to the 48 million deaf and hard of hearing people in the United States alone,” said Howard Rosenblum, CEO of the NAD, of the agreement.  “Amazon is a one-stop shop for everything from household items and clothing to books and video entertainment.  The NAD is thus thrilled by Amazon’s decision to make its online entertainment experience more accessible to deaf and hard of hearing customers who also look to Amazon to fulfill their needs for comprehensive goods and services.”

 “Amazon has long been committed to making its video content available to all of its customers,” said Jim Freeman, Vice-President of Amazon Video.  “We have already undertaken, at our own expense, to provide captions on titles that content providers have not provided.  As a result, all content available through Prime Video has been captioned since the beginning of this year and we already offer an extensive selection of captioned content.  We are happy to partner with NAD to extend captions even deeper into our back catalog of titles.”

“Amazon has one of the largest online entertainment catalogs in a heavily-saturated field of online streaming entertainment providers,” said Arlene Mayerson, Disability Rights Education and Defense Fund, Inc.’s Directing Attorney, who represents the NAD.  “Amazon’s resolve to make its online offerings accessible to people who are deaf and hard of hearing should serve as an example for streaming entertainment providers who refuse to close caption their far more limited catalogs.”

Amazon has demonstrated that captioning online entertainment offerings is a sound business practice in line with ensuring equality for people with disabilities,” said Julie Wilensky, a shareholder at Lewis, Feinberg, Lee & Jackson, P.C., which also represents the NAD.

National Association of the Deaf (NAD)
The National Association of the Deaf (NAD) is the nation’s premier civil rights organization of, by and for deaf and hard of hearing individuals in the United States of America. NAD represents the estimated 48 million Americans who are deaf or hard of hearing and is based in Silver Spring, Maryland. www.nad.org

Disability Rights Education & Defense Fund, Inc. (DREDF)
Founded in 1979 by people with disabilities and parents of children with disabilities, the Disability Rights Education & Defense Fund (DREDF) is a national law and policy center based in Berkeley, California and is dedicated to protecting and advancing the civil rights of people with disabilities. www.dredf.org

Lewis, Feinberg, Lee & Jackson, P.C.
Lewis, Feinberg, Lee & Jackson, P.C. is an Oakland law firm representing workers, retirees, and people with disabilities nationwide. The firm focuses on litigation concerning ERISA (governing pension and other benefits) and wage and hour laws, as well as civil rights laws governing employment discrimination and disability access. www.lewisfeinberg.com

https://nad.org/news/2015/10/amazoncom-inc-agree-expand-closed-captions-amazon-video