Almost every place I have ever gone to says that they are handicap accessible. That means that I should be able to get out of my car and into the building without any trouble, the doorways should be large enough for my wheelchair to fit through, that they should have have an elevator or a ramp if there are flights of stairs, and I should be able to get into the bathroom without any trouble. However, more often than not I end up finding at least one thing that gets in my way. What I've come to realize is that legally the buildings, sports centers, restaurants, et cetera are 'handicap accessible' (as the ADA presents them). Nothing is more stressful to me then going out when I'm in my chair because I worry about places being truly accessible. Not in the legal sense but in the sense that I can get my wheelchair around without knocking things over or getting stuck. I'd like to go to Starbucks and be able to grab my drink without having to struggle to grab it because the counter is too high. Believe it or not but that's stressful.
Before
I begin my rant let me start by saying that most places try to work
with my family and I if there is an issue concerning my wheelchair
or it not offering what I need to get around. But usually if I come
back the store owners still haven't fixed the situation. I'm going to
share three (3) stories that I think will make y'all cringe but also
(hopefully) open your eyes to these situations. I didn't notice all
the problems until I was in a wheelchair so it's easy to glance over
them and not have it once cross your mind that something is
wrong. So without further ado, story number one-
Part
of the reason I had such a hard time at school was because of my
disability. I kept being pushed into the vicious cycle of exhaustion
-- which triggered my pain,-- which then caused me to miss school,
then once I was better I would attempt to catch up...which only lead
to exhaustion once again. The cycle went on and on. A side affect of
having my leg pains was me having to use my wheelchair which I
honestly didn't have a problem with because I knew I had friends to
help me get to classes. The teachers and the staff there were
really willing to work with me when it came to getting around and
catching up on my work. That was a huge God send to have people willing to work with me so I could get things done. While the people in the school were great,
the building itself was horrid. Let me try to paint this picture as
best I can: There were only two elevators in the whole school. One on
the main floor that went up three floors and one in the other
building that only went down to the base floor and back up to the 2nd
floor.
To get to these elevators I'd have to wheel all the way to the other
end of the school to get to most of my classes and to get back downstairs. The elevators also were not very large and had the
problem of shaking when they stopped moving and the door opened,
which did not reassure me that I was safe.
The
school also didn't have ramps inside or outside. Yes they had a ramp
to get onto the sidewalk
but
those were only on one part of the sidewalk meaning I'd have to wheel
to one end of the sidewalk
or
the other to get up. Inside they were lacking a ramp which concerned
me if there was ever an emergency situation. I'd have to rely on another student or
a teacher to carry me out of the building. Even if I wasn't in my
wheelchair I don't trust my legs to take the stairs because of how
many of them there are. The bathrooms were not so great either. The
handicap stall by the cafeteria didn't have a support bar (you know
that large metal bar that is in most stalls to aid people in
standing) on the wall by the toilet...they had the bar on the
opposite wall. Why have the bar on that side? I don't understand.
Also
the bathroom stall didn't lock so my friends would have to hold the
stall door for me. The last bad thing I have to say about the
school are about the cafeteria and class rooms. The average classroom
could not fit my wheelchair in it without it being in the way --
which meant that I had to park my chair in the corner and walk to my
desk. The fact that I had to park my chair wasn't the problem. It was
the fact that if I couldn't get up and walk to my desk or transfer
myself, I'd have to sit up front at the teacher's desk and wouldn't
be able to socialize as much with the other students in my class. The
cafeteria wasn't handicap accessible either. The tables and chairs
were so close together and I couldn't get my chair in and out
comfortably and I had to sit jutted out in an awkward angle. This
also made it hard to get from the lunch line to my table because
people couldn't move their chairs in enough because of the cramped
spaces.
Second
story has to do with a drive in theater that I went to this last
weekend. I had a great time,-- the staff was great and I really
enjoyed the family time. But I couldn't help but notice as I walking
to the concession stand that the road was completely gravel. I'm not
sure how many of y'all have ever tried to wheel a wheelchair over
gravel but it's hard. Really hard. I kept going back to the thought
“well all they need to do is put some concrete here and there to
fix this”. It seemed so obvious to me until I realized that it
wouldn't ever cross anyone's mind. While we waited for the movie to
start I went into the restroom and noticed how narrow the walking
space between the two walls of the stalls was -- not nearly wide
enough to fit a wheelchair into. There was no way my chair, let alone
a power chair, would fit in here. The movies are about an hour and
half each each and we were there to see two movies. How horrible
would have been to have to use the restroom and not be able to get
in.
My
last story is probably the one that upsets me the most. Not because
the building was not accessible, which it was, but because the people
inside would not assist me and one of my best friends. Gilley's is a
venue that is mostly used for concerts. My friend has been to
multiple concerts there and has called ahead in the past letting them
know she was coming and that she was in a wheelchair. They took no
interest in that. Once she and I arrived at the concert last December
to see one of our favorite singers we realized that there were a lot
of people there. Most of them, of course in the front of the stage
already (there were no seats, it was basically first come first serve
in the respect of seating).
Not
knowing what to do we decided to get as close as we could but still
we couldn't see over the people standing in front of us (we were both
in our wheelchairs). When my friend went to the security guard to ask
if they could help us move to the side of the stage or to the front
so we could see they simply looked at her and replied “No, we don't
do that. You’re a liability because of your chairs.” She also
approached the manager who basically said the same thing. What upset
me most was the fact that he walked away after that. No one offered
to help us get in a place where we could see the performer that we
paid to go see and had looked forward to that moment for months --
just like everyone else. And we couldn't see. What I don't understand
is why they were so close minded on helping us. I mean isn't making
sure that consumers have a great time what most businesses want? To
assist their consumers? Can you imagine how much more money they
would make if they treated people who are in wheelchairs or who had
any other type of disability with more respect because those people
would be more willing to go to that venue and pay?
I
understand that remodeling and making sure that places are
accessible costs money and can take a while to work out, however it's
something that will benefit both the businesses and their consumers.
It's not like we're asking you to tear down your entire structure.
We're asking you to making something accessible even if that's just
adding a ramp or making enough space so someone in a wheelchair can
get into the bathrooms. To me that's common courtesy. I implore you
to speak out and suggest changes to buildings or stores if you ever
see a problem that has to do with being accessible. Ask to speak to
the manager, write a letter, blog about it, use social media. It'll
make going out a whole lot more enjoyable for me and others who are
in wheelchairs if we can actually get around without such huge
problems in our way.
XOXO,
Dana
Ummmmm some ramps that are suppose "to help".
(non of these pictures our mine, found on https://disabledaccessdenied.wordpress.com/tag/the-worst-wheelchair-ramps-ever-made/)
