<a_x_i_s_>
Accessibility & Inclusion Statement for Partnerships
For Presentations & Meetings:
Please provide printed and digital visual/text aids in advance of presentations, research reports, or lesson plans.
Virtual meetings must include live closed captioning and be recorded, with the recording shared via Google Drive or email within 72 hours.
For in-person meetings, inviting organizers must arrange and pay for accessible transportation to and from the meeting.
On-Site Accessibility Requirements:
All site partners must comply with the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) and provide basic accommodations for neurodiverse individuals.
Please avoid strong scents/allergens, harsh overhead lighting, and loud music.
Michelle should not be asked to lift or carry anything over 10 lbs.
About Michelle’s Access Needs
Neurodiverse:
Michelle is Autistic and has ADHD, both diagnosed later in life. She may:
Pause during speech to process thoughts
Go on tangents or experience information overload
Require occasional grounding (e.g. deep breathing or mindfulness breaks)
If Michelle becomes overstimulated or overwhelmed, please gently check in and ask what support is needed—this could be a pause in conversation, a grounding exercise, or a glass of water. This model of care and mutual support extends to all collaborators.
Chronic Illness:
Michelle lives with multiple chronic health and neurological conditions:
Dysautonomia: May cause sudden fatigue or require her to lay down with legs elevated. Some days she may be mobile; others, not.
Multiple Sclerosis (MS): Causes frequent falls, pain, and neurological symptoms.
Mastocytosis: A blood disorder that causes heat intolerance, fainting, neurological disturbances and histamine intolerance.
If Michelle faints: stay calm, offer cold water/compress, and do not call 911 unless she requests it or remains unconscious for over a minute.
Learning Disability:
Michelle has Dyscalculia, a math-based learning disability. Please:
Provide written rather than verbal directions when involving numbers
Offer assistance with numerical tasks if needed
Final Note
Michelle’s lived experience navigating a neurobasic and ableist world deeply informs her work and relationships. Her access needs are not requests for convenience, but essential conditions for participation. We ask that all collaborators approach these needs with respect, care, and openness.
This statement also lives in the Accessibility Archive, a growing repository for similar statements employed by creatives navigating the cultural field.
Invitation to participate: ACCESSIBILITY and INCLUSION ARCHIVE
We hope this email finds you well and thriving! I’m writing with a project introduction and an invitation. My friend and project collaborator, Jason Lazarus (Tampa, FL, USA) and I, are searching for Accessibility and Inclusion Statements that fellow Dis (abled) Creatives have crafted to help them navigate the (often unpredictable and inaccessible) cultural field. We are launching our search to create an expanding digital public archive of these statements, initiate future publication(s) of these statements, and for participating artists who are interested, future public exhibition of the statements as art forms themselves. This project, now in its google docs infancy, currently lives here: ACCESSIBILITY and INCLUSION ARCHIVE.
We’d be thrilled if you would consider submitting an existing statement, writing one for the first time, and/or recommending another creative we should reach out to.
This project began through conversations with Jason about an accessibility statement I wrote during a difficult personal transition. I was newly navigating physical Dis/abilities, as well as late diagnoses of autism and ADHD. At the time, I re-entered academia after a decade working with infants and toddlers, only to find the institution unprepared to accommodate my needs—despite my efforts to communicate with them. I was quickly overwhelmed and burned out, a stark reminder of how far many spaces still have to go to be truly accessible.
The process of writing my Accessibility and Inclusion Statement became both an asterisk—marking a necessary pause—and an art form in itself. After several conversations on the topic, Jason was inspired to write his own statement as well, which can be found in the Accessibility and Inclusion Archive Google folder. From there, the project grew organically to include other Dis (abled) Creatives, forming a collaborative space for reflection, advocacy, and artistic expression.
We welcome and support experimental statements—including visual or text-free submissions—that challenge the form and prioritize non-linear thinking, feeling, and access beyond disclosure. For me, starting with a straightforward statement was grounding, and I’m now exploring what an experimental one might look and feel like (see my folder in the archive).
each participant will have an archive folder and can edit their statement(s) at any time
there is an option to be anonymous, which we also welcome
we aim to pay artists for their accessibility submissions in the future as we develop funding through project partnerships and grant income
accessibility contract riders can live in the archive as well
in the future, we envision a dedicated website for the archive
in the future, we envision monthly meetings via zoom for our artists contending with accessibility and seeking community, counsel, solidarity, and empowerment
We are excited to discover what artists might already use and in what form. And for artists who don’t currently employ this kind of statement, we believe the archive will be a powerful resource for artists trying to find the right language and contours for their own statements and contract riders in the future.
We would love it if you would consider being a part of this project. We welcome your questions, ideas, and feedback about our project’s initial form, and hope this project rings some bells for you now or in the future.
In solidarity,
Michelle (and Jason)