Thursday, February 20, 2014

The wheelchair icon gets a makeover and museum fame


The International Symbol of Access is one of the world's most familiar images. But it represents old perceptions of people with disabilities and badly needed a new look. At least that's what artist Sara Hendren, a mother of three including a son with Down syndrome, and Brian Glenney, Ph.D, an assistant professor of philosophy at Gordon College (and sometime graffiti artist), decided back in 2009. And that's how an updated version was born.

BEFORE


AFTER


The two launched the Accessible Icon Project and began tacking up transparent stickers with the new design over old icons throughout Boston. Technically, it wasn't legal to do, but they were on a mission. Soon they were sending stickers to people around the country. People started using stencils to paint the icon on surfaces.

The revamped icon recently became part of the Museum of Modern Art's permanent collection (major honor!) and is on display in the A Collection Of Ideas exhibit for a year.

This summer, New York City started replacing the old icons with the new one. The cities of Austin, Texas and Burlington, Massachusetts, have adopted it, along with a bunch of universities. The project's co-founders have heard from people around the world who are changing the old signage. The hope is the new icon will become the standard (it's compliant with the Americans with Disabilities Act).

The grass-roots campaign has its critics. "We've certainly had people who say, 'It's just an image, and I'd rather you spend your time lobbying for other kinds of concrete change,'" Hendren has said. For her and Glenney, though, this is so much more than an image update. They hope it will, in their words, "provoke discussion on how we view disabilities and people with disabilities in our culture."

I asked Brian Glenney exactly how the new icon could help change mindsets. "The symbol is a call to action, much like the symbols of other movements—the pink triangle used by ActUp! or the raised fist employed by many political groups," he explains. "The more active and independent figure in the accessible icon says 'access now!'

"When Sara and I started this project, we saw it as a needed intervention, an editing not only of signage but of the preconceptions society has of people with disabilities. If the icon does anything to help society re-imagine the more engaged role that people with disabilities might play in society, then it will help pave the way for their inclusion in education, the job market and society in general."

A-men. Anything we can to to raise awareness and portray disability in a more positive (and active!) way is A Good Thing.

You can buy a copy of the sticker, or get a free download, here.

Images: New accessible icon, The Accessible Icon Project, owned by Triangle; old accessible icon, Wikimedia Commons

25 comments:

  1. I like it. It is better looking though it will probably take a long time to become standard everywhere.

    ReplyDelete
  2. this image won't change mindsets. i have a disability. i also have a PhD and a job paying in the very high 5 figures. people don't see those things. they ignore them. but oh, they see the disability. they're blinded by it. no stupid image is going to change squat when real lives don't get through to people.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Anonymous....
      "I have a disability. I also have a PhD and a job paying in the very high 5 figures.". First off. I would like to take a moment and write that, as a learning disabled person, you inspire me!! ;-D
      Second. You also sound a little bitter toward Life. I hope that is not true, and you're only venting temporary thoughts/feelings/emotions, which I completely respect!! ;)
      --Raelyn

      Delete
  3. A waste of time and energy with this redesign. Would love to see a discussion of the symbol that lead to locked doors, broken elevators, obscure in accessible entrances, etc. When my son was a teenager he called the symbol "little blue sings to no where".

    ReplyDelete
  4. If it won't completely solve the problem of accessibility and completely change the perspective of everyone towards all people with disabilities then it's obviously a complete waste of time.

    Oh, wait. That doesn't make sense,

    Of course an icon won't fix issues with accessibility---we should definitely fight for accessibility for all to all spaces . . . but why not also adjust an outdated, passive symbol and replace it with something more representative of the energy and capabilities of those who are in chairs?

    Of course an icon won't change those who "are blinded" by disability. They may be lost causes if they work directly with a person in a wheelchair and are still solely focused on disability . . . but why not change the image posted everywhere in the hopes that it makes a subconscious difference in the way that our children view those who are disabled?

    Changing the icon isn't making anyone's life harder, and they're not asking naysayers to go post them all around town. Why would anyone hate on the change? It seems like looking for a reason to be offended. Somehow I don't think that an artist and philosophy professor are able to go around town repairing elevators----so instead, they did what they could to help.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Dana....
      Thumbs up!! That is all I, an unpublished writer, is going to say!! ;)
      --Raelyn

      Delete
  5. Oh, I love it! Half the battle of accessibility and treatment of those who are disabled is education. I think this is a fantastic place to start.

    ReplyDelete
  6. What about people who can't really move around very well because of pain, chronic illness, or because they're dying? Are they excluded by this symbol?

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Emily....
      "What about people who can't really move around very well because of pain, chronic illness, or because they're dying? Are they excluded by this symbol?". Valid point!! I always thought the wheelchair sign represented both those who were born with physical disabilities AND people who cannot walk due to pain/chronic illness, etcetera!! Perhaps this "new" one will, as well!! ;)
      --Raelyn

      Delete
  7. I think many people in the disability community think it's a waste of time. Does changing the logo encourage snow plows not to dump snow on curb cuts? No. What about making buildings have easy access and accessible bathrooms? No.

    And while some people in wheelchairs ARE able to propel themselves forward, there are also those that can't. Does this mean that the symbol doesn't represent them? Are they less worthy as individuals with disabilities? Must everyone in a wheelchair be a "super crip?" Must they all be "inspiration worthy?" I'm not sure how this leads to education about disabilities any more than the other symbol did. I don't think it portrays disability in a more positive light.

    Sorry to be negative about this one.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Paula....
      "I think many people in the disability community think it's a waste of time.". Says who? Because I think that lots of people in the disability community consider this a good idea!! ;)
      "While some people in wheelchairs ARE able to propel themselves forward, there are also those that can't. Does this mean that the symbol doesn't represent them? Are they less worthy as individuals with disabilities?". Good questions!! I had a dear childhood friend growing up with cerebral palsy who was a wheelchair user. And she could not propel herself forward!! People {Including me at times!!} pushed her. I wonder if somehow we could keep both signs....? One for wheelchair users who are independent.... And people like my childhood friend....? Hmmm.... ;)
      --Raelyn

      Delete
    2. PS. My premature short-term memory loss prevented me from mentioning that I do not like the sound of "super crip". It sounds mean, like name-calling or something. Just sayin'. ;)
      --Raelyn

      Delete
    3. Paula, you raise a valid point about various kind of wheelchair users. That said, this was never meant to make places more accessible. It's about changing perceptions/opening a discussion. See? Here we are discussing!

      Delete
  8. Ellen....
    I never had anything against the "old" wheelchair sign. But I love, love, love this one!! It paints--literally!!--wheelchair users {Notice that I did not write "wheelchair bound"!! Wink, wink!!} in a positive, independent light!! Go, Sara Hendren and Brian Glenney, go!! ;-D
    --Raelyn

    ReplyDelete
  9. I applaud these two for tweaking a standard symbol so that it's more dynamic. Interesting points raised here and on Twitter about whether there should be a more universal icon that encompasses people with disabilities who are not in wheelchairs. Disability rights advocate Nicolas Steenhout shared this related article from TheNthDegree.com, it's thought-provoking and worth a read: http://www.thenthdegree.com/intacces.asp

    ReplyDelete
  10. I like it. Dexter's 3 and may end up in a wheelchair. This sign might help the kids of his generation to recognise the strength and determination people like Dexter show every day.

    ReplyDelete
  11. I love the new look! Hopefully it will help change how the general public views the differently abled.

    ReplyDelete
  12. Don't like it! Really don't like it! Really, really, really don't like it.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Dave....
      Okay, okay, okay!! We get it!! You do not like the "new" wheelchair sign!! Which, is absolutely alright. ;)
      --Raelyn

      Delete
  13. I've always wondered why the sign was like the way it was before. I often confused the legs for a foot rest. The new one looks more dynamic, like the person is going places!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Also, the very old one used to not have a head. Why is that?

      Delete
    2. The new one doesn't have any feet. Why is that?

      Delete
    3. The new one does have feet, but, in the current version, they are confused for a foot rest.

      Delete
  14. Whoa, I didn't know this made it to the MoMA! How awesome! I actually use it in my blog's header because I love everything it represents.

    ReplyDelete

Thanks for sharing!



Related Posts Plugin for WordPress, Blogger...