HOPE: The International Symbol of Access
was implemented to indicate barrier-free areas
for people with all kinds of disabilities.
However, because the symbol depicts a wheelchair,
some people think the accessible areas
are meant for only people who use wheelchairs.
We must broaden our societal idea
of what accessibility means.
Hi, my name is Hope Hoffman
and I'm from Champlin, Minnesota.
I'm a college student and currently working
as a policy intern in the office of
Minnesota Governor Mark Dayton
and Lieutenant Governor Tina Smith.
This past summer, I also interned
with Federal Judge Donovan Frank
at the Warren E. Burger Federal Building in St. Paul.
I live with spina bifida
and use ankle-foot orthotics to walk,
or as I like to call them, "helpers".
I've grown up needing to constantly advocate for myself
in a world that is at most times reluctant to change.
People make assumptions based upon what they see.
The current International Symbol of Access
fails to distinguish a person from a wheelchair.
A head is placed on top of a wheelchair,
effectively creating a human-wheelchair hybrid.
Could this be the reason we continue to fail
in seeing a person with a disability
as more than just that disability?
Perhaps this is why there have been efforts
to change the Symbol of Access already.
New York State recently passed
a new in-motion symbol of accessibility.
Though this symbol has good intentions,
giving life to the image of a person in a wheelchair.
When only a quarter of people with
physical disabilities use a wheelchair,
a wheelchair can't represent us all.
I know for myself that there have been several times
where I've avoided parking
in an accessible parking space,
even if I may have needed it because
the symbol that's supposed to be representing me,
doesn't.
I sat down with disability advocates,
Ashley Bailey and Alma Guerrero, to get their views
on how the International Symbol of Access
impacts them.
ASHLEY: Hello, my name is Ashley Bailey.
I work at Hennepin County as a social worker
for individuals with disabilities.
I think a more inclusive symbol
could show people of different backgrounds
and different disabilities.
I use a walker, so I think it would
be cool to see people in walkers,
and show more aspects of disability.
ALMA: Hi, I'm Alma Guerrero.
I'm 23, studying at Morton College,
and I'm also an advocate
for disability awareness.
You know, not everyone uses a wheelchair,
so while I feel it's nice they thought to update it,
I still feel like it lacks representation
of, you know, the many different
kinds of disabilities that are out there.
So it would be nice to just get a more
diverse representation into the symbol.
HOPE: Are the symbols representing people
with disabilities affecting the
equality of people with disabilities?
I want to know what you think.
Leave a comment on what you think
a new symbol should look like,
or design a new symbol
that you think represents us all.
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Written and Directed by Hope Hoffman.
Special Thanks to Alma Guerrero,
Ashley Bailey, Anna Sing
and Emmaly McClellan.