Use aria-hidden attribute to prevent icon fonts from being spoken.
<h2 id="stats">
<span aria-hidden="true" data-icon="⇝"></span>
Stats
</h2>
[data-icon]:before {
font-family: icons; /* BYO icon font, mapped smartly */
content: attr(data-icon);
speak: none; /* Not to be trusted, but hey. */
}