Below is a very long article, but easier to read this way than on the web site:
For Apple, Accessibility Awareness Happens All Year Long Photo of Steven Aquino Steven Aquino Contributor Diversity & Inclusion Steven covers accessibility and assistive technology. The blue accessibility icon on a blue background, with eyes, an ear, and a hand around APPLE May is Accessibility Awareness Month. As I reported last week for iMore, Apple is recognizing the occasion with a slew of minor yet notable updates to its various properties-Apple Store editorial, Apple Support, and more. Celebrating Accessibility Awareness Month is something the company has done for several years, so this year is no different. Like privacy, Apple's commitment to prioritizing assistive technology is institutional; to paraphrase Kendrick Lamar, Apple got accessibility in their DNA. I've heard stories about how former iOS boss Scott Forstall pushed internally for the inclusion of accessibility features into what was then known as iPhone OS. The first batch-VoiceOver, Zoom, Mono Audio, and White-on-Black- made their debut in 2009 with the iPhone 3GS. There is a codified way of doing business at Apple, and accessibility plays a big role. Accessibility is part and parcel of the design process for new products and initiatives within Apple Park. It's my understanding, according to multiple sources familiar with the matter, accessibility is on the ground floor of considerations when Apple starts development of any product. While it's certainly right to laud Apple for recognizing Accessibility Awareness Month, the truth is recognizing accessibility is a continuous project for the company that extends beyond one month or one day. Accessibility awareness is a 365-day affair at Apple. From emoji and WWDC to media events and diversity reports, the company tries hard to ensure people with disabilities are properly represented in just about everything associated with Apple. With this im mind, and with Global Accessibility Awareness Day (GAAD) coming next Thursday, May 21, as of this writing, here are two areas in which accessibility is abstractly prevalent throughout Apple's software and services. Accessibility Makes The Front Page One of the under-the-radar changes made to iOS 13 (and iPadOS and watchOS 6) was the Accessibility settings were moved from the General section of Settings to the front page. To borrow a journalistic expression, the fact Accessibility went "above the fold" is not merely a change for convenience's sake. It is hugely symbolic-and a reflection of Apple's institutional empathy for disabled people. That Accessibility is on the main page, occupying the same space as other critical system settings, sends a subtle yet powerful message that accessibility matters. Not only to users like me with medically-sanctioned conditions, but to every user. Apple is oft to remind people that accessibility features are relevant to anyone, regardless of ability. While these features will (and should) always remain targeted at people such as myself, good software is useful to everyone. You need not have a bonafide visual impairment to appreciate Dynamic Type, for example. (Which is all the more reason third-party developers should support the API in their apps.) In a broader sociocultural context, that Accessibility is on the main page is important. Again, the symbolism is significant. While you certainly could fairly ask why it wasn't done sooner, the fact Apple did this at all speaks volumes about how they value disabled people. Apple is literally putting the needs of people with disabilities front and center; it's a meaningful gesture that goes beyond literal access. By contrast, it annoys me greatly to see news articles and YouTube videos refer to accessibility options as "hidden"-the implication being said features are deliberately buried deep in the bowels of the operating system by an engineer gone rogue, never to be discovered. As I wrote in my piece on Apple and disability discount pricing, ableism pervades society just as much as racism and sexism, yet is talked about far less. Any logical, good-hearted person will agree people with disabilities and our plights matter, but it oftentimes feels like mostly lip service in the grand scheme. As I wrote to conclude the aforementioned piece: Even amidst the steady drumbeat of championing diversity and inclusion, supporters leave out disabled people more often than not. We're relegated to patronizing, feel-good, human interest story status. As such, Apple's decision to move the Accessibility menu stands to challenge those gee-whiz sentiments. It's yet another example of the company saying people with disabilities exist and their needs are important and deserving of accommodation. Disabled people are just as marginalized and underrepresented as women, people of color, and the LGBT community. And that's not even getting into the intersectionality of disabled people with those other groups. As a disabled person-setting aside my job as a reporter-it means something to me that the biggest, richest company on the planet strives to make us substantial, first-class citizens. Lest you think I'm being overly dramatic about ableism, consider this personal anecdote: All my life, I've had a disabled parking placard. Although my cerebral palsy is much milder than some cases, it still very much affects me to the point that I need close parking. Yet I still get a lot of "Why are you parking so close? You don't look disabled!" questions by strangers. Such comments exemplify ableist privilege. So yes, moving Accessibility means a great deal to me and surely to others. App Store Editorial Features In July 2017, a month after Apple announced the top-to-bottom revamp of the iOS App Store, I wrote a story for iMore wherein I detailed how the App Store could "push accessibility forward." Almost three years later, my hypothesis proved correct. Look no further than my reporting on Apple's Accessibility Awareness Month plans for this year for proof. There is a collection of apps updated with a few new titles that appeared last Thursday on the Today tab. Likewise, there have been other stories featuring apps that "give back", as well as collections of apps that support system features such as VoiceOver. The sharper focus on editorial content is a shrewd business move for Apple, as it makes the App Store more of a destination-fattening that Services line-after years of being sterilely transactional. But it's also beneficial for users: better for discovering new apps, but also better for representation. The reasoning for this is in the same vein as giving the Accessibility menu more prime real estate. It's about exposure-exposure for a marginalized community and for the tools they use. It's not something Apple needs to do every single day, but as I argued in my 2017 piece, the App Store is another avenue in which Apple can uniquely leverage the platform's massive reach. There are hundreds of millions of iOS users worldwide-Mac users too, for that matter-and chances are high that a litany of eyeballs are seeing Apple promote the innovative ways in which disabled people use their iPhones, iPads, and MacBooks. As with the Accessibility menu move, this doesn't lack in significance. The App Store editorial team doesn't need to run these stories, but they do. The Elephant-Sized Caveat I am fully aware Apple does not prioritize accessibility, in any form, solely out of the goodness of their collective heart. Apple does not operate purely on altruism; they're a big, fat corporation that stands to make money. Lots of it. Especially in context of the App Store, it's ultimately a marketing arm. The whole value proposition is the richness of apps make iOS devices and the platform overall more attractive to users-which, in turn, makes the stickiness of the Apple ecosystem that much stickier. This is why WWDC is such a big deal for the company: providing richer development tools to developers makes for more capable devices and a better App Store. So it goes. I get it. Apple is a business. They do what they do to "enrich people's lives," as Tim Cook is wont to say on stage, but the reality is they also do it to make money. it's also worth noting that Apple is not beyond reproach, even when it comes to accessibility. As with everything in life, there's always room to get better. I'm simply trying to illustrate how their strategic choices affect more than the bottom line or marketing or the utilitarian aspects of the products they create. The Bottom Line Apple is a Goliath of industry that endeavors to make as much coin as possible. Being a publicly-traded company, their shareholders and Wall Street demand it. And of course, the SEC requires them to report their earnings each quarter At the same time, however, it is fair (and accurate) to point out the positive aspects of the company's business. Their empathetic nature is different, dare I say refreshing, amongst its ilk of multi-billion dollar, multi-national mega-corporations. Contrary to society's outlook, Apple's views on people with disabilities is decidedly not lip service. Tim Cook talks the talk and the company walks the walk when it comes to supporting people with disabilities. Apple is a beacon of light on an otherwise dreary situation. In Silicon Valley, they are Secretariat at the Belmont. They set a standard for others, just as they did with the iPhone in 2007. Most people don't think of creating assistive technology as innovative, but it really is. Same goes for software quality-people can (and do!) criticize Apple for a perceived lack of high quality software in recent years, but I'd contend the accessibility features are a sign they still know their craft. These features are mission-critical to so many that improve in breadth and depth year in and year out. My peers in the Apple pundit racket know the iPhone not shipping on time every fall isn't a viable option. I have no inside knowledge to confirm this, but would venture to say, software-wise, accessibility is to the iPhone as far as priorities are concerned. It's non-trivial work that's gotta ship. As someone with disabilities, this care towards and push for accessibility awareness means something to me. It's equally, if not more, important than the tech itself. Conquering ableism is an Everest-sized issue that's beyond even Apple's (or any one entity's) ken-but their eagerness to combat it in their own ways is endearing and part of what differentiates them from other companies, technology or not. In this pandemic-riddled world where mainstream media coverage of how the coronavirus affects disabled people is slim to none, there's comfort to be taken in how Apple has included special education in their homeschooling resource kit. Like I wrote at the outset, Apple's work isn't limited to a single month or day. It goes year-round. Sign up for the Forbes (DI)SCUSS weekly newsletter from Diversity & Inclusion Reporter Ruth Umoh. Go to the page where this article appears to sign up: https://www.forbes.com/sites/stevenaquino/2020/05/12/for-apple-accessibility-awareness-happens-all-year-long/#735b85d8116e Check out my Website: https://www.stevenaquino.co/ Photo of Steven Aquino Steven Aquino Steven is a freelance tech journalist based in San Francisco, CA. He covers all things accessibility. What makes his coverage unique is the fact he is disabled- Richard "There's a nap for that." - an anonymous cat in a window in Portland, Oregon. -- The following information is important for all members of the V iPhone list. If you have any questions or concerns about the running of this list, or if you feel that a member's post is inappropriate, please contact the owners or moderators directly rather than posting on the list itself. Your V iPhone list moderator is Mark Taylor. Mark can be reached at: [email protected]. Your list owner is Cara Quinn - you can reach Cara at [email protected] The archives for this list can be searched at: http://www.mail-archive.com/[email protected]/ --- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "VIPhone" group. To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an email to [email protected]. To view this discussion on the web visit https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/viphone/MWHPR1701MB1901C35C3567007BA2CDD0F4B7BF0%40MWHPR1701MB1901.namprd17.prod.outlook.com.
