Press Release: Lawsuit against Arizona State and complaints against Princeton, Reed, Pace, Darden School of Business and Case Western
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
CONTACT:
Chris Danielsen
Director of Public Relations
National Federation of the Blind
(410) 659-9314, extension 2330
(410) 262-1281 (Cell)
cdanielsen@nfb.org
National Federation of the Blind and American Council of the Blind File Discrimination Suit Against Arizona State University
University’s Amazon Kindle DX Pilot Program Discriminates Against the Blind
Baltimore, Maryland (June 25, 2009): The National Federation of the Blind (NFB) and the American Council of the Blind (ACB) filed suit today against Arizona State University (ASU) to prevent the university from deploying Amazon’s Kindle DX electronic reading device as a means of distributing electronic textbooks to its students because the device cannot be used by blind students. Darrell Shandrow, a blind ASU student, is also a named plaintiff in the action. The Kindle DX features text-to-speech technology that can read textbooks aloud to blind students. The menus of the device are not accessible to the blind, however, making it impossible for a blind user to purchase books from Amazon’s Kindle store, select a book to read, activate the text-to-speech feature, and use the advanced reading functions available on the Kindle DX. In addition to ASU, five other institutions of higher education are deploying the Kindle DX as part of a pilot project to assess the role of electronic textbooks and reading devices in the classroom. The NFB and ACB have also filed complaints with the Office for Civil Rights of the U.S. Department of Education and the Civil Rights Division of the U.S. Department of Justice, asking for investigations of these five institutions, which are: Case Western Reserve University, the Darden School of Business at the University of Virginia, Pace University, Princeton University, and Reed College. The lawsuit and complaints allege violations of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) and the Rehabilitation Act of 1973.
Dr. Marc Maurer, President of the National Federation of the Blind, said: “Given the highly-advanced technology involved, there is no good reason that Amazon’s Kindle DX device should be inaccessible to blind students. Amazon could have used the same text-to-speech technology that reads e-books on the device aloud to make its menus accessible to the blind, but it chose not to do so. Worse yet, six American higher education institutions that are subject to federal laws requiring that they not discriminate against students with disabilities plan to deploy this device, even though they know that it cannot be used by blind students. The National Federation of the Blind will not tolerate this unconscionable discrimination against and callous indifference to the right of blind students to receive an equal education. We hope that this situation can be rectified in a manner that allows this exciting new reading technology to be made available to blind and sighted students alike.”
Darrell Shandrow, a blind student pursuing a degree in journalism at ASU, said: “Not having access to the advanced reading features of the Kindle DX—including the ability to download books and course materials, add my own bookmarks and notes, and look up supplemental information instantly on the Internet when I encounter it in my reading—will lock me out of this new technology and put me and other blind students at a competitive disadvantage relative to our sighted peers. While my peers will have instant access to their course materials in electronic form, I will still have to wait weeks or months for accessible texts to be prepared for me, and these texts will not provide the access and features available to other students. That is why I am standing up for myself and with other blind Americans to end this blatant discrimination.”
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See related posts:
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Complaint filed against Case Western Reserve University
- Complaint filed against Darden School of Business/UVA
- Complaint filed against Pace University
- Complaint filed against Princeton University
- Complaint filed against Reed College
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Chronicle of Higher Education + comments
http://chronicle.com/wiredcampus/article/?id=3864&utm_source=at&utm_medi
Student, groups sue over Kindle
Statepress.com (student publication) Publication Date : 6/29/2009 12:00:00 AM
Blind students may have problems using Amazon's Kindle DX, which is being tested in pilot group classes at ASU in fall 2009.
The National Federation of the Blind, American Council of the Blind and Darrell Shandrow, an ASU journalism student, filed a complaint against ASU in order to avoid the future use of the Kindle in the classroom until it is made accessible to blind students.
According to the complaint, the Kindle DX has a text-to-speech function that renders the e-book into audible speech; thus, if the Kindle menus and controls were accessible, blind students would have access to the same content as sighted students through the same device. However, the Kindle DX has no text-to-speech function for menu options, so blind students cannot use the device without assistance. What needs to happen is the menus on the Kindle DX need to be made so blind students can use them, said Chris Danielson, director of public relations at the National Foundation of the Blind.
He said blind students are at a disadvantage because they have to wait long periods of time for their textbooks to be printed, while students using the Kindle DX can access their textbooks immediately. ASU literally advises [blind] students to book their courses in advance and to have reduced course loads, Danielson said. He said other reading device options available right now are inadequate for blind students. There are reading devices that blind people use, but none of them can use the texts that are available on the Kindle, Danielson said. He also said the problem with using the Kindle DX in its current state in a pilot group is that it will promote the University to provide other services that may be inaccessible to blind students. This is a pilot program, but obviously the University is considering expanding [the Kindle DX] to other students, he said. Danielson said that although the University doesn't have an adequate solution for blind students at the moment, he hopes ASU will discuss options. We hope ASU will be able to discuss the issue with us at the appropriate time, Danielson said. Amazon.com, Inc. said they had no comment at the time.
In an e-mail statement, Martha Dennis Christiansen, director of Counseling and Consultation and associate vice president of University Student Initiatives, said ASU is committed to equal access for all students. She said all campuses have Disability Resource Centers and that these allow disabled students to obtain services and accommodations. These efforts are focused on providing the necessary tools to ensure that all students with disabilities have an equal opportunity to be successful in their academic pursuits, Christiansen said. Shandrow, also a member of the American Council of the Blind, disagrees. Not having access to the advanced reading features of the Kindle DX will lock me out of this new technology and put me and other blind students at a competitive disadvantage relative to our sighted peers, he said in a news release from the National Federation of the Blind.
Shandrow added that printing issues make it difficult for him to have the same advantages as other students who use the Kindle DX. While my peers will have instant access to their course materials in electronic form, I will still have to wait weeks or months for accessible texts to be prepared for me, and these texts will not provide the access and features available to other students, he said. Reach the reporter at reweaver@asu.edu
Link to Comments on A2K (Access to Knowledge) list
http://lists.essential.org/pipermail/a2k/2009-June/004663.html
Extract of first post:
Reading about these kinds of accessibility problems really gets me worked up. I don't know how many other blind people are on this list but to me, problems like this say to me that suggesting that we let the market solve accessibility problems is a joke. Even universities have to be forced to pay attention to the needs of the blind.
For years I've been telling people that going blind isn't as bad as you'd think. I know people who insist that they'd kill themselves if they went blind. Really, going blind is no big deal. Having said that, though, I'm going to explain how it is a huge problem at least in some ways.
I work in information technology. One thing about working in IT is that there is always something new. Oh, I'm sure there are some people still doing the same jobs they did 20 years ago. But for most jobs in IT, you have to be prepared to continuously learn the next big thing. If you don't, you become expendible.
I have a lot of blind friends in IT jobs and I've seen it happen again and again. When the next big thing comes along, they're not given an opportunity to get involved. They become less and les the "go to guy" where they work.
Their job duties gradually become more and more restricted. And when layoffs come around, they're the easiest ones to let go. In a way, that's only fair.
They truly are less important to the company than other people.
Most successful blind people that I know make up for it by working harder than everyone else. And they spend their spare time keeping up with technology. Every blind IT professional I know learned their job skills on their own in their spare time. This is why issues like the accessibility of the kindle and the WIPO treaty are so important. If you're blind, it's hard enough to keep up with your sighted counterparts. It is just way easier to scan a manual visually than it is by sound. But when the manual you need just isn't available to you, you're just stuck.
I cannot imagine what the people at ASU were thinking when they instituted an e-textbook program without making sure the device was accessible first.
Can you imagine how hard it is to compete as a blind student even without the additional access problems something like this would create. I don't believe a blind person can get through college without having a certain level of mental toughness. And for the school to throw additional barriers in their way is unconcionable.
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