Abstract
AAC as a field, a category of technologies, and a culture has advanced tremendously and rapidly in the past 40 years, yet the vast majority of people who cannot rely on speech alone to be heard and understood still lack meaningful access to effective communication that meets their physical, emotional, social, and cultural needs, and fulfills the civil and human rights to which they are entitled. The following article discusses some of the underlying reasons for these access gaps, but more importantly, highlights their devastating effects: an entire disability community subjected to repeated, pervasive, and often lifelong trauma. Indeed, many of the “challenging behaviors” traditionally considered inherent to certain communication-related disabilities may actually be the result of communication deprivation and its complications, including lifelong experiences of ableism, abuse, and violence against which one has no recourse. With so much at stake, it is crucial that AAC researchers learn from the words of those of us with access to the tools we need to share them, toward the shared goal of a world where that access is ubiquitous.
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This paper is one in a series from the Future of AAC Research Summit to be published in the AAC Journal. A video of Grant’s presentation can be viewed here.
Please cite as
Koloni, R. (2025). To include us in our own worlds: AAC is not optional. Augmentative and Alternative Communication, 41(3), 226–229. https://doi.org/10.1080/07434618.2025.2515283