What does it take to make the arts open to d/Deaf and disabled people? Jenel Shaw, executive director of Arts AccessAbility Network Manitoba (AANM), joins Simon to explain how her organization is doing it — starting with an accessibility audit that the disability community designed itself.

Jenel walks through why AANM skipped the usual panel of doctors, therapists, and architects and asked disabled artists and audiences what they actually needed. The result is a 174-point audit that covers the whole venue experience, from the parking lot to backstage, published in a free public database so patrons can check a space before they go. She also gets into the anti-ableism workshop that grew out of the audits, the move to audit digital access — including the five-minute ticket timer that locks people out — and why knowing how a venue isn't accessible matters more than being told that it is.

It's a practical, clear-eyed conversation about treating disabled people as the experts on their own access, and what changes once you do.

👋Guest Info

Arts AccessAbility Network Manitoba: https://aanm.ca

Free accessibility audit database: https://aanm.ca/accessibility-audit-database/

Anti-ableism workshop for the arts: https://aanm.ca/anti-ableism-workshop-for-the-arts/

"Disability Gains" — AANM's forthcoming book featuring 34 d/Deaf and disabled writers

Current Exhibit: https://aanm.ca/exhibitions/

Contact AANM: info@aanm.ca · 204-336-2366

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⏰Chapters

00:00 Intro

01:22 Meet Jenel Shaw & finding her community at AANM

03:10 What Arts AccessAbility Network Manitoba does

05:18 What an accessible future looks like

06:16 Why disabled people are the real experts on access

07:36 Inside the 174-point accessibility audit

10:52 The biggest barrier, and why transparency matters

14:42 Winning the Manitoba Accessibility Award & the gallery

16:46 Taking the audit digital

18:20 Who gets left out — and creative fixes

21:40 Where organizations should start

23:25 Why accessibility helps everyone

25:36 Inside the anti-ableism workshop

29:56 Beyond the arts, and one thing to start today

32:43 Where the work goes next & where to find AANM

34:59 Outro

#AccessibleFuturePodcast #Accessibility #DisabilityCommunity #DisabilityRights #Inclusion #BarrierFree #DisabilityArts #AccessibleArts #Winnipeg #Manitoba