If you are going to fly to Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood Airport (FLL) for the DSA 2023 Hollywood conference you may want to learn about the Hidden Disabilities Sunflower program.
There is now a better and easier way for Deaf people to travel. Deafness itself is invisible to airport employees. The Sunflower program is a discreet way to make our “invisible” disability visible.
Today many airports give out sunflower lanyards to passengers with hidden disabilities. Wearing the Sunflower lanyard shows discreetly that the wearer has individual access needs. Lanyard wearers will receive additional support and assistance in moving throughout the airport.
This program began at Gatwick Airport in United Kingdom in 2016 and it has been recently adopted at many airports in the United States and in many other countries. About 80 airports in the USA are now Sunflower-friendly. Not all airports in the USA are in this program yet.
You can receive your Sunflower lanyard at the time you check in your baggage at the check-in counter in the airport. Be sure to ask for it. If they do not have the lanyard then just ask for service. When you return home from the conference you can ask the check-in counter at Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood Airport (FLL) for your lanyard.
Once you have your Sunflower lanyard, please keep it and use it every time you travel. The Sunflower lanyard is, or will soon be recognized not only by airlines but also by trains, theme parks, supermarkets, emergency services, theaters, and more.
The success of the Sunflower lanyard has been positive and it has increased awareness of the barriers that Deaf and other people with disabilities face. For more information about this program, you can visit https://hiddendisabilitiesstore.com
List of USA airports that are sunflower friendly:
(Airports with * means Sunflower is coming soon)
Akron-Canton
Albany International
Albert J. Ellis*
Albuquerque International Sunport
Allegheny County
Austin-Bergstrom International*
Bolton Field
Boston Logan International*
Bradley International
Central Illinois Regional at Bloomington-Normal
Charleston International*
Charlotte Douglas
Chicago Rockford International
Cincinnati/Northern Kentucky International
Clinton National
Columbia Metropolitan
Colorado Springs*
Dallas/Fort Worth International*
Dallas Love Field*
Dane County Regional*
Denver International
Detroit Metropolitan Wayne County
El Paso International
Eugene
Evansville Regional
Fairbanks International
Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International
Fort Wayne International
Houston*
Jackson-Medgar Wiley Evers International*
JFK International
John Glenn Columbus International
LaGuardia
Lehigh Valley International
Lincoln
Louis Armstrong New Orleans International
Melbourne Orlando International
Memphis International
Miami International
Milwaukee Mitchell International
Minneapolis-St Paul International
Missoula Montana
Myrtle Beach International
Nashville International*
Newark Liberty International
Norfolk International*
Northwest Florida Beaches International*
Omaha Eppley Airfield
Ontario International*
Orlando International
Orlando Sanford International*
Philadelphia International
Piedmont Triad International*
Pittsburgh International
Portland International
Raleigh-Durham International
Rapid City Regional
Redmond Municipal
Rhode Island T. F. Green International
Rouge Valley International
Salt Lake City International
Salisbury Regional*
San Antonio International
San Jose International
San Luis Obispo County Regional*
Santa Barbara*
Seattle-Tacoma International
Springfield-Branson National*
Southwest Florida International*
Syracuse Hancock International
South Bend International
Tampa International
Ted Stevens Anchorage International*
Toledo Express
Tulsa International
Vero Beach Regional*
Westchester County
West Virginia International
Wilkes-Barre Scranton International
William P. Hobby Houston*
