Hawaii Foundation for the Blind
Reading this site

Accessibility

This is a foundation for blind and low-vision people, and several of its own directors read this site with a screen reader. Accessibility here is a build requirement, not a courtesy.

Change how this site reads

These change how this site looks to you. They are stored on this device only, and they do not affect anyone else.

They work alongside your own settings rather than replacing them. If your computer or phone is set to dark colors, reduced motion or forced high contrast, this site already follows that — you only need these controls to ask for something different.

Colors
Uses whatever your computer or phone is set to, and changes with it.
Dark text on a cream background.
Light text on a near-black background.
Text size
About one sixth bigger.
About a third bigger.
Half as big again. Everything scales, so nothing is cut off.
Typeface
Whatever your computer or phone normally uses.
Designed by the Braille Institute for readers with low vision. Letters that are easily confused — capital I, lower case l and the figure 1, or O and 0 — are shaped differently from one another.
Spacing
More space between lines, words and paragraphs. Some readers find text easier to track this way.
Contrast
Already meets the strictest published standard, WCAG AAA.
Pure black and white, with every edge drawn as a hard line. Higher than the standard requires. Some readers find it clearer; others find light text on pure black spreads or glows, which is why it is not the default.

What these settings deliberately do not do

There is no “read this page aloud” button and no screen reader built into this site. If you use a screen reader, yours is better than anything we could add, and a second one fighting it would make this site harder to use, not easier. The same goes for cursor size and magnification: your own software does those properly.

What this site owes you instead is markup your software can work with. That is what the rest of this page is about.

The standard

How this site is built

The target is WCAG 2.1 Level AA.

  • Real structure. Headings are real headings in order, lists are real lists, and tables carry captions and row and column headers. No text is bolded to look like a heading.
  • Works without a mouse. Every control is reachable by keyboard, in a sensible order, with a focus outline that is always visible. A “skip to main content” link is the first thing on every page.
  • Works without JavaScript. Every page renders and every link works with scripting off — including the settings above, which are carried in a cookie the server reads rather than in browser storage only JavaScript can see. JavaScript adds the mobile menu and instant preview; nothing depends on it.
  • Contrast. Body text meets WCAG AAA (7:1 or better) in both color schemes, not just the AA minimum of 4.5:1. Measured on the built pages, not judged by eye.
  • Never color alone. Every status shows a symbol and a word as well as a color.
  • High contrast mode. If your operating system is set to force its own colors — Windows High Contrast, for example — this site uses them rather than overriding them.
  • Reduced motion. If your system asks for reduced motion, animation and smooth scrolling are switched off.
  • Text scales. All sizing is relative, so enlarging text in your browser enlarges the whole page rather than clipping it.
  • Targets. Buttons and navigation links are at least 44 by 44 pixels.

What has been checked

  • Heading outline, landmarks and page language, inspected on the built pages.
  • Contrast ratios computed from the rendered colors, not judged by eye, on every page, in both color schemes.
  • Every form control has a programmatically associated label.
  • Keyboard reachability and visible focus on every interactive element.
  • Behavior with JavaScript disabled.
  • Testing with real screen readers — NVDA, JAWS and VoiceOver — by people who use them daily.
  • Testing at 400% browser zoom and with a screen magnifier.

Report a barrier

If something on this site does not work with your screen reader, magnifier, keyboard or voice control, it is a fault and we want to know.

Telephone: (808) 378-5908

Please say which page, what you were trying to do, and what software you were using. You do not need to diagnose it.

This statement was last reviewed on October 7, 2026.