Reid My Mind

I am happy to see that Ron, over at the Access Ability Blog, is as angry as I am, regarding Blog Carnivals blatant disrespect toward the blind community.

I urge everyone to do as Ron decided, "I’m putting on my advocacy hat today. I’m steamed,…"

What can you do;

1. If you have a blog, please post on the issue. (Let me know so I can link to your post)
2. Send an email to BC support@blogcarnival.com letting them know how you  feel.
3. Add a comment letting me know you sent an email
4. Spread the word about Blog Carnival’s decision to exclude the blind community.
5. Read Ron’s post titled,

BlogCarnival.com says they don’t allow blind people and they don’t care if that’s offensive

Note to BC, "It Ain’t Over!"

I got a letter from Blog Carnival today,

I open and read it, it said they were suckas…

A little play on a Public Enemy lyric.

After several attempts to contact Blog Carnival and inform them  that their use of visual  only CAPTCHA excludes  people who are visually impaired, I finally receive a response.

I would love to hear from others in the community especially those who use the BC service. My response which follows BC’s note, says how I feel.

Here it is…

—– Original Message —–
From: "BlogCarnival Support" <support@blogcarnival.com>
Sent: Sunday, May 04, 2008 3:12 PM
Subject: Re: Blog Carnival Refuses to admit the blind community

Thomas –

Thanks for your email about CAPTCHA and about the visually impaired
community.

Unfortunately, Blog Carnival doesn’t have plans at this time to implement
CAPTCHA.  We are considering redesigns of the site, but we do not have a
timeline for that.  We will keep CAPTCHA in mind as we look at redesign
options.

Good luck with your efforts to make the web a better place!

Yours,

Denise
Support@BlogCarnival.com

—

My response…

—– Original Message —–
To: "BlogCarnival Support" <support@blogcarnival.com>
Sent: Sunday, May 04, 2008 6:34 PM
Subject: Re: Blog Carnival Refuses to admit the blind community

Denise,

Thanks for the response.

You said,"Unfortunately, Blog Carnival doesn’t have plans at this time to
implement
CAPTCHA."

By this I am assuming you mean no plans to introduce alternative CAPTCHA
solutions. That’s really too bad. Blog Carnival is missing out on an
opportunity to make a statement not only to those with visual impairments,
but the entire disability community. The statement, "Your participation is
important to us."

I guess there is the possibility of an alternative statement based on the
future redesign.

Based on this response, I personally will forgo from participating in
carnivals that use BC. I will continue to make others aware of the official
statement.

Feel free to let me know if there are any changes in Blog Carnival’s
position on visual only CAPTCHA.

Respectfully,
T.Reid

I recently had a conversation with someone regarding issues of discrimination they face because they use a guide dog. One restaurant owner not only refused to serve this gentlemen because he had a guide dog, but the owner refused to serve other patrons who voiced their objection to the owner’s treatment of my friend. After the police were called and the law was explained to the restaurant owner, he was so insistent in his belief against serving someone with a guide dog, he decided to close the restaurant for the day.

The owner  didn’t care about rights, or even doing the right thing, he obviously has something against people with service animals. Some people let their beliefs and ignorance impact their business.

Hmmm!

Here is this week’s note to Blog Carnival. Blog Carnival, like the restaurant owner, apparently has an issue with people who are blind. I have received several notes from others in the community who have sent emails asking them to respond, but yet still, no response.

—

Subject: Blog Carnival Refuses to admit the blind community

This is my 5th attempt to contact a member of the Blog Carnival customer support management team regarding the use of visual only CAPTCHA.

As noted in prior emails, the use of a visual only CAPTCHA prohibits those with visual impairments from making any submissions through the BC interface. This includes posts to blog carnivals as well as inquiries to  blog hosts  and support.

The refusal to respond to inquiries to accommodate the blind community have sent a clear message, "Blind Carnival doesn’t want people with visual impairments to use their service."

It’s apparent that Blog Carnival has an inaccurate perception of the amount of computer users and bloggers with visual impairments. Blog Carnival is not aware of the amount of people with disabilities who believe in accessibility, and unfair treatment and disrespect toward one segment of the disability community directly impacts the community at large.

A few facts to think about;
According to the American Foundation for the Blind,At least 1.5 million people who are blind use computers."

There are 54 million people with disabilities in the United States.

Current users of your service have asked for your cooperation to provide a solution.

The accommodations that can be made to allow independent  submissions are readily available and have been pointed out by myself and others.
See: http://www.recaptcha.net/.

Individual blog carnival hosts will continue to be contacted. Some have pledged their support and are planning to remove their carnivals if BC does not respond to the request.

You will continue to receive emails from me at least weekly until I hear from a BC manager on the steps BC is prepared to make to resolve this issue of inaccessibility and lack of respect for those of us who are blind.

T.Reid

I still have not heard anything from the folks at Blog Carnival regarding their use of a visual only CAPTCHA.

In addition to Lon who is hosting the Assistive Technology Blog Carnival, Penny from the Disabilities Carnival is aware of the issue and I hope will spread the word among other disability bloggers.

Below is this week’s email to Blog Carnival. I guess I will have to keep up a weekly email until BC decides to respond or make the form accessible.

—

You should be aware that this is the fourth time I am writing to you regarding the inaccessibility of your submission form. This form requires the user to complete a visual only CAPTCHA in order to complete the submission process.

As a computer user who is blind, I am unable to complete the process independently.

Others in the visually impaired and blind community have written to you requesting a change.  Most often, in cases of inaccessibility based on visual CAPTCHA’s, the issue is based simply on an inexperience and ignorance to the problem these graphic only tests cause people who are visually impaired and blind. However, the refusal to acknowledge is sending a much different message. Blog Carnival is essentially saying to the blind community that they are not wanted on this site and the inability to use it is not a concern.

The accommodations that can be made to allow independent  submissions are readily available and have been pointed out by myself and others.

You should be aware that individual blog carnival hosts have been contacted and are planning to remove their carnivals if BC does not respond to the request.

I will continue emailing and blogging on this subject until I hear from someone in the BC management. In addition, I will continue informing current BC customers about BC’s unwillingness to work with the blind community.

T.Reid

The below note was sent to Blog Carnival yesterday via the online form. (I was able to get my wife to read the visual CAPTCHA)

Let’s see if they respond and even more importantly, take action.
—
This is the third time I am writing to inform the BC Administration and Support that you use of visual only CAPTCHA which  restricts people who are visually  impaired or blind from independently participating in blog carnivals.

I, like thousands of people with visual impairments, use a screen reader to access the web. Unfortunately, screen readers cannot read graphic files similar to the botnets that your CAPTCHA is trying to restrict.

There are other methods of CAPTCHA such as ReCAPTCHA.

I am not sure why I have not yet received a response informing me what BC intends to do about the problem. I have taken it upon myself to use my blog to begin informing people of the lack of attention this matter is receiving. I expect a response from a BC manager with more detail regarding BC’s policy and plans to remedy this situation.

Regards,
T.Reid
www.reidmymind.com

And then…

Thank you. Your message has been sent.

Now let’s see if it’s received and acknowledged.