By Scott Will
The Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) is meant to prevent discrimination against people with disabilities. Businesses must comply with the ADA when creating, updating, or maintaining their websites using a service like accessiBe. This guide will help business owners understand their obligations under the ADA and make their websites accessible to everyone.
What is the ADA?
The Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) is a civil rights law passed by Congress in 1990, which prohibits discrimination against individuals with disabilities in employment, state and local government services, businesses that are public accommodations or commercial facilities, and transportation. Most of the protections provided by the ADA focus on removing societal barriers that make it difficult for people with disabilities to be full and active participants in everyday life.
The ADA gives civil rights protections to individuals with disabilities similar to those based on race, color, sex, national origin, age, and religion. It guarantees equal opportunity for individuals with disabilities in employment, public accommodations, public services, transportation, telecommunications, and in the removal of architectural, communication, or transportation barriers.
The purpose of the ADA is to make sure that everyone who is qualified has an equal opportunity to compete for and participate in employment opportunities, businesses are safe from discrimination during their hiring process, provided with goods and services without facing discrimination, and can access any state-funded public service such as transportation, and has equal access to places of public accommodations such as businesses.
What does it take for a website to comply with the ADA?
The requirements under Title III of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) are that all websites be “readily accessible to and usable by individuals with disabilities.” In addition, the law requires private sector organizations to ensure that individuals with disabilities have an equal opportunity to benefit from any good, service, or activity provided by the organization’s website.
What types of websites are covered under ADA Title III?
All Internet sites, including social media and web applications, e-commerce sites, information portals, company Intranets and Extranets, and all content, including videos and audio files.
What does “readily accessible to and usable by individuals with disabilities” mean?
It means that a qualified individual with a disability should be able to access the information available on a site’s pages and use the site’s features just as easily as someone without a disability. Section 508 of the Rehabilitation Act and Web Content Accessibility Guidelines 2.0 offer specific criteria for making web content more accessible.
Following the law means making your site available to everyone – including those who use screen reader software, magnifiers, or other adaptive technology to access websites. It also means that you’ll need to provide alternative ways to access your sites, such as providing text descriptions for images and videos. Finally, it also means evaluating your site’s performance using assistive technologies, such as screen readers.
Conclusion
The ADA is a civil rights law that prohibits discrimination against people with disabilities. Businesses must comply with the ADA when creating, updating, or maintaining their websites. By following the guidelines in this guide, business owners can make their websites accessible to everyone.
