Heard a really interesting story on NPR the other day about the roles blogs are playing in a protest at Gallaudet University, a liberal arts school for the deaf in Washington D.C. No doubt the growth of blogging in the deaf community has also helped the controversy reach many more ears through the mainstream media. (Protestors are speaking out against a new president set to take office in January.)
Some of my earliest experiences online, well, on BBSs, anyway, were courtesy of two blind co-workers of mine at Taping for the Blind in Houston. It might seem counter-intutive that a computer screen was liberating for these sight-impaired folks, but the digital format made for easy amplification and translation via text-to-speech technology. Yes, I know there are still many battles to be fought for accessiblity online, but it’s certainly better now than it used to be in those days (early ’90s).