Accessibility and Universal Design
Comparing the specific details, for instance the width of the door, the knob style, the height of the knob, etc, of the entrances to the 2010 ADA Design Standards checklist, we could see the door should be quite accessible for people with disabilities (2010 ADA Design Standards). And it could also meet the access requirement for a wide range of people as the design overlaps many of the requirements listed in the Universal Design (the Center for Universal Design). First conceptualized by Ronald L. Mace in 1990, Universal Design is a movement trying to make the environment accessible to a board range of human diversity, people with disabilities, people without disabilities, elderly people, etc. It is an approach to “the design of all products and environments to be usable by all people to the greatest extent possible without the need for adaptation or specialized design.’’
Universal Design (UD) is really valuable since sometimes it might becomes a problem when we do some specific changes to help someone, like a person with disability. As long as we recognize their identity as disabled and accommodate their particular needs, we are separating them from normal people and individualizing disability. “What the problem is, then, is disability as an individual matter.” (Titchkosky, 12) It’s kind of ironic that while we are advocating for equal opportunities and equal rights for people with disabilities and normal people, we are separating them by labeling them as “disabled.” However, with the basic principles of “Equitable Use”, “Flexible Use”, “Size and Space for approach and use”, etc., the Universal Design sets a standard to design which is universally accessible. Thus, instead of making accommodations for individuals, making everything equally accessible to everyone seems to be much more effective, and could also solve the problem of individualizing the special identity of people.
Universal Design (UD) is really valuable since sometimes it might becomes a problem when we do some specific changes to help someone, like a person with disability. As long as we recognize their identity as disabled and accommodate their particular needs, we are separating them from normal people and individualizing disability. “What the problem is, then, is disability as an individual matter.” (Titchkosky, 12) It’s kind of ironic that while we are advocating for equal opportunities and equal rights for people with disabilities and normal people, we are separating them by labeling them as “disabled.” However, with the basic principles of “Equitable Use”, “Flexible Use”, “Size and Space for approach and use”, etc., the Universal Design sets a standard to design which is universally accessible. Thus, instead of making accommodations for individuals, making everything equally accessible to everyone seems to be much more effective, and could also solve the problem of individualizing the special identity of people.