There may soon be federal "Voting Reform" legislation in the U.S. to set
minimum standards for what is not being termed the "Clarity" of ballot
design and the overall design of local Polling Place voting systems
(and for easier verification of the vote count).... as the problems in
the supposedly "close" Florida vote for President, continue to expose
defects in the existing systems.
So far in the public debate, "clarity" of ballot / system design is
being discussed interms of clarity for some voters who are elderly, new
to voting, or who do not read English well -- of course equal access to
voting must also include removalof barriers faced by voters with
disabilites. We emphatically reject the argument that "absentee voting"
is the one panacea for accessibility, because that maximizes the
political invisibility of PWD's, in the greatest Public Space of them
all, the neighborhood Polling Place. In the Pollling place, if they
don't se any people with noticable disabilities, AB people may forget
who tends to be underrepresented in that space, and they may mistakenly
think that "this is a snapshot of the full diversity of adults in this
community".
Disabled rights activists have traditionally taken on other aspects of
voting rights -- registration, and removing barriers at entrances to
Polling Places. (Disabled In Action had to sue the City of New York to
get accessible polling places, and tensd of thousands of them are still
inaccessible ensewlere in the U.S.) But since "the train is leaving the
station" or will be soon, on legislation setting new standards for
ballot design / voting machine design / voting systems design ..... we
MUST be a part of those standards.
I N V I T A T I O N
Tell us what's good or bad, in terms of accessibility, for you, or for
all -- about the design of any voting technology that you have
personally used.
1.) We'd like to hear about GOOD EXAMPLES, from anywhere in the world.
2.) And we'd like to hear about BAD EXAMPLES, particularly if they're
in use in the U.S.
3.) And please specify where the system was used, and as much info as
possible so we can track down what system it is, (and if applicable --
what brand?, what model?, etc.).
Please do NOT post the info on this List-Serv;
PLEASE SEND IT TO ME, DIRECT, at
[log in to unmask]
This is a time-sensitive thing.
THANK YOU.
Jim Davis
(of DIA, Disabled In Action of Metropolitan New York)
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