Barrier-Free Mindset

In this article, I will discuss the issue related to the social welfare policy on blind people.

Europe and the United States began in the 1960s campaign to promote a barrier-free environment. In the United States in 1968, a formal announcement of the Architectural Barrier Act provided that the design of facilities and public buildings should consider the convenience for the disabled, which was mainly in line with the use of the wheelchair-accessible facilities such as ramps, toilets, parking space, etc. (Oliver, 1998).

The situation regarding the social welfare for the disabled in some Asian area is as follows: In 1990 the “Disabled Welfare Act” was amended in Taiwan to establish a barrier-free environment for the disabled. This part of establishing a barrier-free environment was the main focus of the Welfare Act. In 1997, the Welfare Act was formally included in the Constitution. In the same year, the revised version of the “Law for the protection of the physically and mentally disabled” was published, thus completing largely the legislative work on the field of physical and mental disability.

Considering the reality aspect, the outcome of the legislation seems disappointing. Though some laws have been established, some building designs still lack the awareness of the convenience of the visually impaired.

This shows that the public still hasn’t paid much respect and attention to the real needs of blind people. The true essence behind the stipulation and enforcement of the social welfare law is that: in addition to the assistance that the various types of disabled people can receive, a barrier-free environment campaign should no longer be limited to the physical entity (such as a ‘move-free’ space); furthermore, the campaign should expand its scope to provide equal rights of living for the disabled in the society.

I will attempt to use my documentary to awaken the awareness of the public toward the issue of the civil right of the visually impaired in the future.

Reference

Oliver, Michael.,Barnes, Colin (1998). Disabled people and social policy: from exclusion to inclusion.London : Longman,

Originally published at http://poeticmindfulness.wordpress.com on August 16, 2020.