# Contrast and accessibility **URL:** \ **Category:** UX\ **Created:** [Août 19, 2015, 11:40 UTC](https://meta.discourse.org/t/contrast-and-accessibility/32287 "2015-08-19T11:40:23Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 1\ **Showing post:** 1
**Author:** ![sdaugherty](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/meta/user_avatar/meta.discourse.org/sdaugherty/32/102997_2.png) [@sdaugherty](https://meta.discourse.org/u/sdaugherty)\ **Post date:** [Août 19, 2015, 11:40 UTC](https://meta.discourse.org/t/contrast-and-accessibility/32287/1 "2015-08-19T11:40:23Z")
[https://meta.discourse.org/t/testing-dark-theme-on-meta/30610](https://meta.discourse.org/t/testing-dark-theme-on-meta/30610) The dark theme trial on meta made me realize some things that had been bothering me about the user interface of Discourse, and since those things aren’t specific to the dark theme, I figured it warranted a separate discussion before it gets buried. The extent to which Discourse uses low-contrast UI elements to reduce clutter is actually a serious accessibility problem. People with mild to moderate vision impairment generally have poorer [contrast sensitivity](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Contrast_%28vision%29#Contrast_sensitivity), but some people with 20/20 vision also have issues. This is compounded by the fact that many of the more obvious coping strategies, like disabling the stylesheet, completely and utterly break the site, and by the fact that users with mild impairments may not realize their condition, and rarely have access to (or need for) more robust assistive technologies as are used by people with severe or complete vision impairment. > [@Coming soon to Meta new\_moon DARKNESS new\_moon](https://meta.discourse.org/t/coming-soon-to-meta-new-moon-darkness-new-moon/31993/76): > > Low contrast is a bad way to reduce distractions though, because it disproportionately affects users with vision impairment. What is “subdued” to a user with normal vision becomes illegible or even invisible with mild to moderate vision impairment. I have to wave my mouse all over the screen on the default theme just to find the buttons Besides that, “greyed out” in user interfaces has traditionally meant, “this is where this thing would normally be but you can’t do that right now”. There’s s… [https://meta.discourse.org/t/coming-soon-to-meta-new-moon-darkness-new-moon/31993/71?u=sdaugherty](https://meta.discourse.org/t/coming-soon-to-meta-new-moon-darkness-new-moon/31993/71) Anyway, getting the discussion started about this, in hopes that I can raise awareness, and hopefully work create a better experience for users with disabilities. --- _[View the full topic](https://meta.discourse.org/t/contrast-and-accessibility/32287)._