I have been reading your paper for the last six months and I have been finding it interesting especially the feminist section which is very good as I am able to relate to the articles as they are addressing real feminist issues. However, I feel that although the paper appeals to me, I find it is hard to read. As a dyslexic person, it is an extremely academic and a complex read.
I went to university as a mature student and discovered that I was dyslexic and struggled with the academic and elitist language and the attitudes of some tutors. I find it frequently frustrating that organisations such as yourselves, who are doing really important work, continue to alienate people with disabilities, or those people who don’t possess a grounding in political language.
At some events it can be difficult to join in the discussion and I have been put off by the fact that some individuals have used language that has been alienating as I just don’t understand what they are talking about. How can you reach out to the working class and oppressed groups, who have been excluded from the education system, by using political jargon? If you want to broaden your readership you should not take it for granted that everyone has grounding in political terminology and history.
The ideas expressed in Solidarity I feel could be put forward just as well using simpler and more accessible language, shorter articles (some articles are streams and streams of words and no illustrations) and a larger typeface. You are at the current time failing to take into account a number of people including people with disabilities. Solidarity’s failure to acknowledge this means that you are end up only targeting people who already possess a broad political knowledge. Surely you must recognize disability rights, yet there are barriers in your paper that excludes people like myself. This is something that can be easily rectified and I hope you take steps to become a more accessible paper.
I look forward to hearing what you and your readers think about this issue.
Izzy Turnbull, Nottingham
