I read the articles about Ableist Architecture, and the Technology Gap.  The idea of  “access” is present in both, yet different.

In the Ableist article, “access” is in its most physical interpretation: some people cannot get to some places because of their disabilities.  Generally, the solutions they are asking for is for greater consideration of their condition by companies and institutions they work with, from airlines to buildings.  Something mentioned in the article that I did not know was the existence of “ugly laws”, which were laws that fined low-income or homeless disable people in cities for appearing “unsightly”.  Despite the existence of the Americans with Disabilities Act, which many Americans think “solved” all of the problems facing disabled people, but the societal attitude was not changed at all.  The two main things mentioned in the article are airplanes and movement in cities.  For the airlines, having smaller and smaller seats, and additional charges for every little thing adds significant expense for certain groups of people.  And in cities like Charlotte, with old streets and sidewalks, people with impaired movement have significant difficult navigating.  I will say I am not certain how to deal with these issues.  For the airlines, it is pretty difficult to say they are discriminating against certain groups of people when everyone is affected by these changes.  But I am stronger in my conviction regarding the old cities.  We cannot go around and destroy an entire city to build it all again.  If we were to make changes, they would need to be on top of the already existing infrastructure.

In the article about the Technology Gap, “access” is access to certain technologies.  Namely, computers, smartphones, broadband internet, and tablets.  The differences between percentages of income levels which have these devices are large.  Two of these are the most important, broadband internet and computers.  The other two are not strictly necessary to keep up with school, and this technology gap most affects low-income children in schools which are moving towards more technological ways of teaching.  Broadband internet is gradually reaching all corners of the country, but for some areas private companies are unwilling to implement it because they do not find these areas financially viable for expanding their network.  Regarding access to devices, many school districts are giving their students free computers such as Chromebooks or iPads, or providing significant discounts.  And while this is certainly a good step, there are still issues regarding who actually has control of the device and the school’s ability to see what the student does on the device.

There are still groups of people who lack “access” to everyday things in our modern society, and while we are moving in the right direction, the question is how much will they lose out before they get access.