Albert’s Thoughts

National Disability Employment Awareness Month: The benefits of barrier free access to employment for professionals with a disability

National Disability Employment Awareness Month: The benefits of barrier free access to employment for professionals with a disability

Chris Zomp2019-10-21T15:51:15-04:00October 15th, 2019|Albert's Thoughts, Employment|

October is National Disability Employment Awareness Month (NEAM) and the theme this year is “The Right Talent, Right Now.” Recent data reports that the national employment rate in the United States currently hovers between 96-97 percent. That’s almost full employment. Yet the employment rate for people with disabilities hovers around 32 percent. That is absolutely

Downton Abbey Helps Us Understand the Need for National Disability Employment Awareness Month

Downton Abbey Helps Us Understand the Need for National Disability Employment Awareness Month

Kara Sweet2019-10-28T07:03:56-04:00September 23rd, 2019|Accessibility, Albert's Thoughts|

"Highclere Castle" by Richard Munckton Licensed under CC BY 2.0 by Albert J. Rizzi, M.Ed. Like many anglophiles, I’ve been waiting for the release of the Downton Abbey film. I started watching the old television episodes to bring myself up-to speed and had a revelation that the show can help the rest of the world

The ‘Dis’ labeling Words We Use

The ‘Dis’ labeling Words We Use

Tommy Rhatigan2019-10-28T07:06:57-04:00September 11th, 2019|Albert's Thoughts, Community|

By Albert J. Rizzi, M.Ed. I am someone who happens to be gay. There was a time when if someone called me a “Queer” or a “Fag” I would have considered knocking them on their ass. As a man who happens to be blind, were you to call me disabled I would similarly take you

I’ll have my Pizza with an Extra Topping of Discrimination, Please!

I’ll have my Pizza with an Extra Topping of Discrimination, Please!

Tommy Rhatigan2019-09-05T13:13:48-04:00September 5th, 2019|Activities, Albert's Thoughts|

By Albert J. Rizzi, M.Ed. As you may know, I happen to be blind. The other day, I went to a local pizzeria. Since it didn’t have any menus in braille or any electronic options for me to listen to, I asked the person behind the counter to tell me about the different toppings for

Political Candidates Don’t Care About Voters with Disabilities!

Jon Buonaspina2019-07-30T19:38:22-04:00July 30th, 2019|Albert's Thoughts, Government|

By Albert J. Rizzi, M.Ed. Recently in a piece titled “None of the 2020 Websites Are Fully Accessible to Disabled,” Time magazine reported that, not just some, but ALL the websites for all the candidates in the 2020 presidential race are not accessible or usable to people who have a print disability. This is unacceptable.

Uber and Lyft are not Panaceas for Transportation if you have a Disability

David Middleton2019-07-31T10:57:46-04:00July 23rd, 2019|Activities, Albert's Thoughts, Community, Outdoors|

by Albert J. Rizzi, M.Ed. For some reason, the state of New York bars individuals who happen to be blind from securing a driver license. Because of this, many of my peers and colleagues from the disability community rely on public transportation, taxis, and the kindness of strangers to get around. This means that we

MBS Founder Advocates for digital equity and AccessAbilty in NY Times Article

David Middleton2019-07-30T15:24:53-04:00July 8th, 2019|Accessibility, Albert's Thoughts|

Albert J. Rizzi, MBS Founder, advocates for digital equity and AccessAbility for all in the NYTimes, discussing struggles faced when managing his personal wealth because the financial industry inadequately services those who have disabilities. Read more at the NY Times...

Digital Accessibility and Inclusion in the Gaming World

Ron Bowes2019-02-01T10:29:06-05:00January 29th, 2019|Albert's Thoughts, Entertainment, Technology|

Digital Accessibility in the gaming world has been and is at best clumsy. And perhaps because friends recently rekindled my interest in Dungeons & Dragons the article, “Chat Functionality in Games Released in 2019 Must be Accessible to Players with Disabilities” by Natalie Flores caught my attention; interests may be dormant, but are never forgotten.

Government Shutdown Hurts the Disability Community Disproportionately

Ron Bowes2019-01-25T16:56:36-05:00January 25th, 2019|Albert's Thoughts, Community, Government|

Upon reading an op-ed, “Government Shutdown is Hurting Thousands of Federal Employees with Disabilities” in The Hill, I’m compelled to call on Congress and the President Trump to stop posturing and fighting for turf like the Sharks and the Jets did in West Side Story. Officer Krupsky, should the disability community be deprived because our

When it comes to employment, we failed to live up to the promise of the Americans with Disabilities Act

Ron Bowes2019-01-17T15:01:54-05:00January 17th, 2019|Accessibility, Albert's Thoughts, Employment, Uncategorized|

In response to The New York Times op-ed, My Blind Spot's Albert J. Rizzi says Ted Kennedy Jr.'s recommendations for true inclusion need to include digital equity in the 21st century workforce. On December 27th, former Connecticut State Senator and board member of the American Association of People with Disabilities, Ted Kennedy Jr. wrote an