Accessibility is a core design principle, not a feature toggle.
Accessibility is about people navigating systems with dignity, ease, and equity.
Compliance is a starting point, a legal floor. Accessibility is the lived experience.
Compliance asks: Can a screen reader technically get through this form?
Accessibility asks deeper questions like, is it understandable without stress? Does it support people with memory, focus, or fatigue challenges? Would someone feel included while reading or using it?
The technical path is not the whole journey.
Accessibility isn’t a one-size-fits-all box to check, it spans across: visual access, auditory clarity, motor functionality, cognitive simplicity, sensory sensitivity, environmental realities.
True accessibility considers variation, not just validation.
When we design beyond compliance, we: reduce barriers before they become problems, include people who are too often left out, reflect how diverse the world actually is, improve usability for everyone, not just “edge cases”.
Accessibility isn’t an upgrade, it’s a baseline of care.
— Signed, Summer ✍️
