Introduction
For many people, accessibility and inclusion can feel daunting. The list of requirements seems overwhelming, and it can feel impossible to make buildings, programs, and events accessible to everyone with a disability. These are understandable and justifiable concerns — though not always for the reasons people assume.
Many would like to imagine accessibility as a blanket solution, something that can cover everyone equally. However, the reality is much more complicated. Different disabilities often require different, sometimes conflicting accommodations.
What happens when those accommodations cancel each other out?
Conflicting Accessibility Needs in Real-Life Scenarios
Sensory-Friendly Events and Blind User Experience
During welcome week for first-year students in college, my university hosted a silent disco. The event was designed to be accessible, especially for students with sensory issues. Each participant was given a pair of headphones they could use to tune into different music options and control the volume themselves.
For my ADHD brain, it sounded fantastic — I hate loud events.
But as a blind person, I decided not to attend. Wearing headphones that block out my surroundings sounded like a nightmare.
Does that make the silent disco a bad event? Absolutely not. For the majority of students, it was a great opportunity to experience something different while accommodating those with sensory needs.
At the time, I was the only blind student on campus, so it wouldn't have made sense to turn the event into a regular disco — which, frankly, I wouldn't have attended anyway.
The university did the right thing. They understood the needs of their students and did their best to accommodate them.
Why Universal Design Isn't Always Inclusive
When we talk about accessibility, we often use the phrase "universal design," which does a great job of capturing how accessibility improvements can benefit everyone.
However, universal design has its limits. It doesn't account for events like silent discos, where accommodations for one group can unintentionally exclude another.
Accessibility isn't about finding a single blanket solution for everyone. It's about creating solutions that make it possible for the intended audience at a given event or environment to participate equally.
ADA Fire Alarms vs. Photosensitive Epilepsy Safety
Let's look at another example. Many fire alarms emit an audible alert along with flashing lights — a crucial accommodation for the Deaf and hard-of-hearing community. Without that visual indicator, they may have no way of recognizing the danger in time.
However, the flashing lights can pose a serious risk for individuals with photosensitive epilepsy. Seizures can be triggered by lights flashing between 5 and 30 times per second — a range that overlaps with some strobe-style alarms.
While the ADA requires both audible and visual fire alarms, it doesn't always account for the flash rate or other sensory sensitivities. This is yet another example of how accessibility solutions for one group can unintentionally create barriers for another.
The same complexity exists in digital accessibility. ADA compliance is more than a checklist. It requires careful design and testing to ensure that digital content is accessible to everyone. Solutions like DARTSuite enable organizations to navigate these complexities better, faster, and more economically by providing access to experts on-demand.
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COVID Mask Mandates and Lip Reading Barriers
During the COVID-19 pandemic, most public places required masks. This reduced the risk of exposure for everyone, especially for people who are immunocompromised. However, it created a serious barrier for members of the Deaf and hard-of-hearing community who rely on lip reading to understand speech. In response, some companies began selling transparent masks that made lips visible while still offering protection.
But clear masks never became the standard. Instead, it was up to individuals to find and purchase them. I knew about them. I wanted to buy them. But I never did. I have no excuse. It just slipped my mind.
In theory, the accommodation was available. In practice, it went largely unused.
Conclusion: Building Better Digital Accessibility Through Listening
We have seen that even the best-intentioned blanket accommodations often collide with someone else's needs. This does not make accessibility a hopeless endeavor. Instead, it highlights the very real concerns faced by businesses, event organizers, and others who are trying to implement appropriate accommodations.
Accessibility advocates have created lists of accommodations that are generally useful. But the danger comes when these lists are treated as boxes to check, rather than starting points for thoughtful design. Standardization feels efficient, and in many areas, it is. Accessibility is no exception to the appeal of efficiency.
Still, I challenge readers to take a few more minutes to consider the needs of the intended audience.
Who, exactly, are we trying to serve?
What, exactly, do we hope to accomplish?
How might our accommodation unintentionally create barriers for other groups?
And if collisions are likely, how often do we expect them to happen?
Accessibility isn’t a checkbox...it’s a conversation, one that requires us to weigh different needs and adapt as we learn. If this post resonated with you, I encourage you to read Going Blind – Story of Safety & Inaccessible Public Transit. It shares a personal account of how well-intentioned systems can fail without thoughtful design.
For a broader perspective on the challenges of standard accessibility tools, Automated Accessibility Tools vs. Overlays: Pros and Cons breaks down why automated compliance often misses the mark and what inclusive design really demands.
Together, these stories remind us that accessibility starts not with a standard, but with listening.
At AccessAbility Officer, we understand that creating accessible environments can be challenging. It’s why we built DARTSuite for digital accessibility compliance and the CAT Program for technical upskilling and digital accessibility certifications.
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