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Speeches
Tony Coelho
Chairman
President's Committee on Employment of People with Disabilities
51st Annual Conference
Technology Symposium
May 7, 1998
New Orleans, Louisiana
Good morning. Thank you for being here for our Symposium on
Technology and Workers with Disabilities.
Now before I begin, I should tell you up front that unlike so many
of you, I am not schooled in science or technology.
But that won't stop me from talking about it.
For most of my life I was a politician, and a good politician is
never at a loss for words. We are accustomed to speaking at length on
topics about which we know very little.
I do, however, know something about the everyday challenges faced
by America's 54 million people with disabilities.
I know because I have epilepsy . . . the result of a head injury I
experienced as a teenager.
Like so many others with disabilities, I have personally felt the
sting of discrimination-- more times than I like to remember and more
than I'm able to forget.
Because of misconceptions about epilepsy, I have been expelled from
a seminary, had my driver's license revoked, been denied jobs,
discriminated against by health insurers, and rejected by the armed
services. I've been put out, put down, and put off by religious
institutions, state governments, corporate America, the insurance
industry, and even Uncle Sam.
So, yes, I think it's fair to say I know something about the
problems facing people with disabilities.
I speak to you today in the hope that through technology we can
help put an end to discrimination, expand opportunities, and begin to
solve one of the problems I am most concerned about: the meager 26%
employment rate of people with severe disabilities.
Although I am not a "techie," I do have a reasonably good layman's
grasp of the enormity of the technological changes that are sweeping
the world.
I stand in awe of them, of the pace of technological progress, and
of its impact on our lives.
While we are talking here, thousands of new telephones are being
installed around the world... one every second or so.
A new personal computer is being installed every two seconds.
In just a few decades, information-processing technology has
exploded to the point where a 100-gram cell phone packs the power of a
1960's mainframe computer.
Wow! Talk about progress!
Technology now touches nearly every aspect of our lives. We send
email instead of greeting cards, get directions from computers in our
cars, and file our income taxes, order flowers, and plan our vacations
on-line. The benefits of all this technology are tangible.
It makes our nation's businesses more productive. It makes our
homes safer and more energy efficient. It makes our transportation run
more smoothly.
It informs us, entertains us, and helps us do a better job of
educating our children.
Unfortunately, the benefits of technology that I am speaking of
have not touched everyone's lives. Universal access to information
technologies and telecommunications is critical. Without universal
access, we will see a further polarization of the haves and have-nots,
the educated and the uneducated, the rich and the poor, the
"temporarily able" and people with disabilities.
For too long, too many people with disabilities have been shut out
of the American dream. With universal access -- and, as I will discuss
momentarily, universal design -- we can begin to break down barriers
to full participation in our nation's economy.
For some people with disabilities, new technologies already have
provided opportunities in the work place that did not exist
before.
In many situations, however, employees with disabilities are unable
to use the same technology as others. This is a major frustration to
them and to employers who honestly want to accommodate their
workers. It often requires employers to explore the use of adaptive
technology: equipment which provides access through the use of
peripheral hardware or software.
Yet, the field of adaptive technology can be highly complex. More
so because decisions usually need to be made on a case by case
basis.
To help employers make well-informed decisions on worksite
accommodations, the President's Committee operates the Job
Accommodation Network (JAN).
It's a toll-free telephone consulting service that has been
extremely successful in offering both low-tech and high-tech solutions
to accommodate people with disabilities in the workplace.
Employers who have called JAN praise it for its commitment to
common sense and cost effectiveness.
I wish I could say we have all the answers, but you and I both know
that even the most sophisticated adaptive technology cannot solve all
the problems of access.
The best way to solve access dilemmas is to build the solution into
place from the get-go...
To plan during the design stage to provide access for users with a
wide range of disabilities.
In the physical environment, accessibility standards for building
construction ensure that people with disabilities can function in the
same facilities as others.
For technology, the same principles of universal design are
starting to be applied.
The underlying concept is the same; when access is addressed at the
blue print or design stage, the additional costs are minimized and the
benefits are maximized.
Universally designed technology is only beginning to be
seen. Emerging information technologies, telecommunications and
software generally are developed with little regard to their
accessibility to people with disabilities.
Clearly, as our workplaces become more and more dependent on these
technologies, it is increasingly crucial that universal design
concepts are considered and applied.
Unfortunately, not only are appliances, software, information
technologies, and telecommunications developed with little regard for
accessibility, but employers are not building accessibility
requirements into the specifications for the equipment, software and
networks they procure. This must change.
Employers must keep the needs of a diverse workforce in
mind. Insisting on universal design is a tangible expression of the
policy and practice of inclusion.
And, as we have seen elsewhere, universal design almost invariably
results in greater productivity, comfort, convenience and safety for
all...... not just those with disabilities.
More should be done to encourage business, government agencies,
educational institutions and other employers to build accessibility
into the specifications for their software, hardware and
networks.
That's why the President's Committee has launched an effort to
promote the development, procurement and utilization of universally
designed information technologies and telecommunications in the
workplace.
To help us, we are forming a task force composed of:
- Corporate executives from relevant industries -- such as long
distance telephone companies, regional Bell operating companies, cable
operators, cellular phone operators, television and radio networks,
computer and other electronic appliance manufacturers, and software
developers;
- People with disabilities;
- Appropriate government agencies, such as the FCC; and
- Other entities involved in regulating, providing, or developing
information technologies and telecommunications. Woody Kerkeslager,
AT&T'S Vice President for Technology and Infrastructure, will head
up the task force. We are very lucky and very proud to have Woody on
our team.
Few people have as much knowledge and experience in the field of
telecommunications. He is committed to ensuring that standards for
technology are developed in a way that benefits people with
disabilities. You will be hearing from Woody during this symposium, as
well as from other experts in the field of information technology and
telecommunications.
As I said earlier, I am a product of a primitive era . . . before
modems and microchips, before lasers and laptops, before computers and
cloning. If you say "Dolly" to me, I think of the Broadway musical --
not molecular duplication or genetic experimentation.
But I am willing and able to learn. And that is what I am asking of
all of you. Keep your minds open and come together to explore how to
make current and future technology accessible to employees with
disabilities. Technology has the power to be a liberating force in the
workplace. We cannot afford to strive for anything less.
Speeches
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