Do demands for online disability access affect free speech?
Updates to the rights of persons with disabilities issues have documented recent work to highlight web access for persons with disabilities, notably, the US Department of Justice (DoJ) that free online course content must be accessible to persons with disabilities, or it must be removed from the UC Berkeley site. Discussion about this decision, such as Justice Department Disability Demands Raise Serious Free Speech Issues and Obama-Era DOJ Violated Free Speech Through Burdensome Demands for Disabled Access indicate that the decision is still controversial and may face review. Before the current Berkeley case, a related ruling in 2015 Justice Department Reaches Settlement with edX Inc., Provider of Massive Open Online Courses, to Make its Website, Online Platform and Mobile Applications Accessible Under the Americans with Disabilities Act. The debate continues, including objections by scholars, and support for removal of the non-compliant materials from some educators: ‘Berkeley’s move to ensure accessibility in all of its public materials is necessary, though the college could also consider making choice selections from its past wealth of material accessible for all students’.
About author
DW Team
The GIP Digital Watch Observatory team, consisting of over 30 digital policy experts from around the world, excels in the fields of research and analysis on digital policy issues. The team is backed by the creative prowess of Creative Lab Diplo and the technical expertise of the Diplo tech team.