OK Micro.blog in particular and #indieweb in general, we have another insentive to work on accessibility: Mastodon will be accessible, but only to a point, for the foreseeable future.

I am a huge fan of what the federated web represents, and I hoped Mastodon could be a way for more people to participate in that without having to manage the technical aspects of going full Indieweb. But if the federated web is going to carry over one of the worst parts of the corporate web, (intentionally cutting corners when it comes to including everyone while at the same time the expectation of recognition for the parts of the community of disabilities it has included), then it’s time to fedquit.

It’s like silo-quitting, except a whole lot more disappointing.

I can, and will, quit using Mastodon, as soon as I’m done writing this status. I’ll continue supporting the underlying protocols which are the back end of Mastodon on my personal site, in the hope that someday there’s a project that supports open protocols but is built with accessibility in mind from the ground up.

But I believe I’d be missing out on a huge opportunity to help move the IndieWeb forward if I failed to use this moment to encourage other platforms which make it easier for other non-technical people to participate in the IndieWeb to up their game and make sure that everyone is included.