COAT legislation petition now signed in 44 states!<\/p>\n
We would like to encourage each of you to support some very important
\nlegislation that will make a tremendous difference in the lives of
\ndeaf and hard of hearing citizens. The 21st Century Communications &
\nVideo Accessibility Act is going to be re-introduced and we would like
\nCongress to know that the needs of deaf and hard of hearing Americans
\nshould not be overlooked.<\/p>\n
As you may know, CSD was one of the founding members of the Coalition
\nof Organizations for Accessible Technology (COAT) and we have joined
\nthem in efforts to ensure that the federal laws that we have worked so
\nhard to enact over the past 20 years keep in pace with new
\ntechnologies. For instance, television shows that are re-shown over
\nthe Internet are under no requirement to be captioned – even if they
\nhad captions when they were shown on TV! Also, small TVs, cell phones,
\nPDAs, and other mobile devices are not required to display captions,
\neven though they are now capable of showing TV shows. Also, for now,
\n9-1-1 emergency call centers cannot accept calls from people who need
\nto communicate in video or via pagers.<\/p>\n
There is still much work to be done and we need to show our support
\nby signing petitions on the COAT website. Overall, the goal is to have
\n5,000 signatures before the 21stCentury Communications & Video
\nAccessibility Act is re-introduced! Please show your support now by
\nlogging onto their website at
\nhttp:\/\/www.coataccess.org\/node\/add\/petition to electronically sign
\ntheir COAT petition.<\/p>\n
Ideally, the petitions should be representative of consumers from all
\n50 states. But at this time, there are few or no petition signers from
\nthe following states: Iowa, North Dakota, Nevada, Nebraska, Oklahoma
\nand West Virginia. Regardless of what state you are from, please go to
\nthe COAT website and learn more about their efforts and support their
\ncause by signing the petition — they still need more petitioners from
\nALL 50 states.<\/p>\n
Below is a copy of the petition itself. If you agree with it, again
\nplease go to their site and SIGN THEIR PETITION! It takes only a few
\nmoments and will do a great deal in showing members of Congress how
\nmuch we all care about access in the 21st century.<\/p>\n
We, the undersigned, support the legislative and regulatory proposals
\nof the Coalition of Organizations for Accessible Technology (COAT) to
\nensure full access by people with disabilities to evolving high speed
\nbroadband, wireless, and Internet communication and electronic
\ntechnologies.<\/p>\n
Over the last 20 years, various federal laws to ensure access to
\ntelephone and television technologies have been enacted. However,
\nthese federal laws have not kept pace with new technologies. For
\nexample, television programs distributed over the Internet are not
\nrequired to have closed captions or video description – even if they
\nhad captions and description when they were shown on television. Also,
\nalthough televisions with screens larger than 13 inches must display
\nclosed captions, small televisions, cell phones, PDAs, and other
\nmobile devices do not have this same requirement; nor are they
\nrequired to pass through video description. In addition, although
\nfederal law requires phones over the regular public telephone network
\nto be hearing aid compatible, it is not clear whether this obligation
\ncarries over to smart phones used for communication over the Internet.
\nNor are there any affordable phone devices that work for people who
\nare deaf-blind. The list goes on and on – nearly every time new
\ntechnology is introduced in the marketplace, people with disabilities
\nget left behind! We say enough is enough!<\/p>\n
We want access. We need change. We support COAT’s efforts to enact
\nthe Twenty-first Century Communications and Video Accessibility Act
\nand other laws and policies that will ensure equal access to
\ntelecommunications, the Internet, and television programming!<\/p>\n
If you would like to forward this email request and petition to your
\nfriends and family members, please do so. Don’t hesitate to forward
\nthe petition to anyone who might be willing to send their signature!
\nYou can use the automatic petition forwarder at the following:
\nhttp:\/\/www.coataccess.org\/node\/88<\/p>\n
Thank you in advance for your support and for helping to make a
\ndifference!<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
COAT legislation petition now signed in 44 states! We would like to encourage each of you to support some very important legislation that will make a tremendous difference in the lives of deaf and hard of hearing citizens. The 21st…<\/p>\n