by Jenann Elias

The National Federation of the Blind (NFB) prevailed in its lawsuit against Target Corporation in September. The NFB sued Target because it considered Target’s website unfriendly toward the visually impaired. A federal court in California issued a ruling which may eventually give visually impaired readers greater access to all commercial websites. 

The suit was filed as a class action by the NFB against Target on behalf of all blind Americans, who do not have full access to target.com. The named plaintiffs are the NFB, the NFB of California, and a blind UC Berkeley student, Bruce "BJ" Sexton. 

There have been other attempts to require websites to accommodate visually impaired users—fruitless efforts for the most part. In 2002, a blind Internet user’s suit against Southwest Airlines’ was shot down because service she was attempting to use was considered “online-only” material and was not connected with Southwest’s brick-and-mortar business.  Businesses that are only online, such as Amazon.com, are not required by law to accommodate the visually impaired on their websites. 

The basic argument against Target is that its retail website is not friendly to the visually impaired. Many of the online services do not support screen readers, or they require users to use the mouse because the keyboard functions are disabled. Furthermore, the NFB suit claimed the website Target.com offers services provided by brick-and-mortar Target stores, and those services are public accommodations. 

The NFB does not claim that visually impaired Internet users cannot place an order at Target.com, but rather that the blind cannot access special online services that help them shop in real stores.  

For example, it is difficult to use the website's store locator, which finds a local store's location and opening hours, and it is difficult to use the online pharmacy, where a customer can order a prescription or refill online before picking it up at a Target store.  

Mazen Basrawi, Equal Justice Works Fellow at the Berkeley-based Disability Rights Advocates, who is representing the NFB said, “The court clarified that the law requires that any place of public accommodation is required to ensure that it does not discriminate when it uses the Internet as a means to enhance the services it offers at a physical location.” The court’s September ruling required Target stores to make all parts of its website accessible to visually impaired Internet users in California.

For more information:
http://www.out-law.com/page-7285
http://biz.yahoo.com/prnews/060907/cgth051.html