Alumna demands better accessibility on campus

by Nicholas Neikon Ebadat STAFF WRITER

President Adela de la Torre was sent an open letter on April 4, pleading for a campus that lifts people who are Deaf, Hard of Hearing, or Disabled with the opportunity to meet the standards of their peers with goals that include: removing barriers, providing communication alternatives and including Deaf/Disabled advocates with deliberative processes.

The 12-page letter came from Donna Duarte, a longtime SDSU Alumna, educator, contributor and advocate for Deaf and Disability Rights who began her time as a student at campus as a non-disabled hearing person and is now a person who is Deaf and has disabilities.

Duarte calls for SDSU to “eliminate the communication deprivation” she said is prevalent in most events, meetings and even emergency services.

In a 12-page letter, Duarte explained the many inaccessible aspects of SDSU’s campus.

Photo by Katelynn Robinson

Interpreters at sporting events are not placed next to the speaker segregating Deaf people from others, automated captions are hard to understand or nonexistent unless asked for, emergency towers around campus are made for two-way communication and SDSU Police Department denied her request for 911 texting, according to the letter.

“That day I learned SDSU does not value my life and would not do the right thing to ensure I had an accessible way to reach SDSU PD in case of emergency,” she said in the letter.

With the unveiling of the new Snapdragon stadium coming soon, Duarte has submitted a binder with signatures for accessible open captions at both the new stadium and Viejas Arena.

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