AVOID THE SINS OF THE PAST BY GETTING
MEANINGFUL INPUT FROM MARGINALIZED PEOPLE
A group of disabled community members and Disability Rights Washington DC staff at a public hearing in Seattle about sidewalk maintenance.
Anna Zivarts, program director, Disability Mobility
Initiative at Disability Rights Washington, is author of the Island Press book
“When Driving Is Not an Option: Steering Away from Car Dependency.”
Zivarts said public engagement aimed at people with
various disabilities is not a courtesy, it is an essential.
She cautions planners from undercounting people with
disabilities, noting that a built environment might be so filled with barriers
that it keeps people with disabilities off the streets and sidewalks.
For instance, as a low-vision person, Zivarts cannot read
street signs with tiny fonts. Having better signage for pedestrian routes for
people with disabilities would benefit all people in a city, especially
visitors.
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