Graphic with lime green background and blue paint swath in the top right corner. Large gray text reads, ‘Disability Civic Engagement Gide,’ To the right illustrations of people holding signs include a woman with brown skin and a prosthetic arm holding a white overhead with gray text that reads, ‘keep our disability community involved,’ and a Black man with sunglasses holding a sign overhead with the Able South Carolina logo and slogan that reads, ‘independent living for all.’Disability Civic Engagement Guide

Use this guide when creating events and communications that are inclusive and accessible to People with Disabilities.

While people with disabilities are one of the largest minority groups in the United States, they are rarely viewed as a marginalized community. In fact, many initiatives to improve diversity and equity often do not include them. Furthermore, disability occurs across all demographics, including race, ethnicity, age, gender, socioeconomic status, education level, sexual orientation, Etc. When civic engagement events are not accessible for everyone, this can lead to more exclusion.

When participating in civic engagement activities, people with disabilities are empowered to make change and demonstrate their right to freedom of speech. During the marches and rallies held across the country in 2020, we received calls from people with disabilities who wanted to participate and be heard. We intervened, reaching out to the event organizers who needed resources to make their events accessible. We provided guidance and listened to their desire to include everyone.

As a result of the barriers faced by the disability community, we developed this guide.  It will provide resources and assistance for event organizers with making civic engagement activities fully accessible. This is a resource that we hope will be valuable to event organizers and members of the disability community.