Public Address | Cafe | Access: Respect, please

Christine Peet

Fri, 08 Jan 2016 20:50:48 +1300

Just an update that I managed to get my service plan changed. The sexuality question is there so they can find out about transgender clients according to the agrncy person i spoke to. This section has been removed on my service plan.

Hilary Stace

Mon, 21 Dec 2015 09:17:12 +1300

I love how these Access posts sometimes go on for months. What a great Access Archive (thanks again Russell). However, also shows that problems raised are often not addressed.

Christine Peet

Sun, 20 Dec 2015 22:16:17 +1300

He wasn't being nosey. Just felt obliged to ask a question that was on the form. Appropriate response would have been N/A.

Rosemary McDonald

Sun, 20 Dec 2015 21:31:57 +1300

asked a coordinator to explain why this needs to be there, and also to remove it. Both requests have been ignored.

NO No NO!

Totally unacceptable, and breaches your rights under the Code.http://www.hdc.org.nz/the-act--code/the-code-of-rights/the-code-(full)

1) Every consumer has the right to be treated with respect.

2) Every consumer has the right…

Christine Peet

Sun, 20 Dec 2015 18:42:36 +1300

It is gobsmacking that people using wheelchairs are routinely asked about their sex lives

I have recently changed agency and went through their service plan questionnaire with one of their staff members. One question related to sexuality and sexual needs. I asked if we really needed to go there and…

Christine Peet

Sun, 17 Aug 2014 16:58:21 +1200

Or…..the carpark is wide enough to get into your chair…..but, there is no ramp up to the footpath without having to beetle behind ten parked cars…..dreading reversing lights coming on.

Our supermarket was renovated some time ago, and someone put in concrete ramp where the mobility parks are. It got…

Rosemary McDonald

Sun, 17 Aug 2014 16:51:24 +1200

My biggest gripe is the council are so nice in putting mobility parks everywhere, but they’re more often than not the same width as a regular car park.

Or.....the carpark is wide enough to get into your chair.....but, there is no ramp up to the footpath without having to beetle…

Angela Hart

Sun, 17 Aug 2014 13:47:44 +1200

We provided clear and polite feedback, both verbally and in writing.
The bump strips for the blind can often be placed so that it's still possible to push a manual chair without too much difficulty. Too often they are not. Both sets of needs can usually be accommodated if the…

Christine Peet

Sun, 17 Aug 2014 11:50:29 +1200

I got given a book some years ago by a friend written by Alexia Pickering with her assessment of "accessible" accommodation. While very out of date, and an updated edition never published (to my knowledge) We use it time and time again, and have found it very accurate and useful.…

Christine Peet

Sun, 17 Aug 2014 11:40:00 +1200

I live in a street literally two corners from a little shopping centre, and the irony is that it's quicker and safer for me to take the time to put my wheelchair on my hoist and drive there than to push my chair. I have to cross the road sooner…

Angela Hart

Sun, 17 Aug 2014 11:34:52 +1200

yup, we stayed in a Tauranga motel this year, checked it was accessible prior, ( as you really have to do), found it wasn't really. Very steep short portable ramp put in place for the occasion but only workable with an able bodied pusher and difficult even then. Bathroom was…

Rosemary McDonald

Sun, 17 Aug 2014 10:45:22 +1200

they probably think they’ve taken appropriate steps (language!) by consulting with a narrow group, often of very able disabled.

Oh, yes.

In our 'before Bus' days, when journeys far from home necessitated staying in motels and the like, we would scour the accommodation guides for the 'wheely symbol', denoting the…

Angela Hart

Sun, 17 Aug 2014 01:04:51 +1200

If only the designers and engineers were able to recognise what they don't know and ask for input- from a diverse range of likely users, not a narrow group. I'm getting really worried about the advisory groups and policy makers because they probably think they've taken appropriate steps (language!) by…

Rosemary McDonald

Sat, 16 Aug 2014 22:13:26 +1200

Having a bit of a chuckle at this Hilary.

Peter has those small caster wheels on the front of his manual chair, and oh, how they will find any and all irregularities in the pavement surface.

Peter had two accidental tip outs....here at home, simply rolling over a slight crack…

Sacha

Sat, 16 Aug 2014 21:56:16 +1200

bonus points for crossing a railway

Hilary Stace

Sat, 16 Aug 2014 21:35:43 +1200

I hope they use those manual wheelchairs with the horrible little front wheels that get caught in every crack in the pavement and threaten to tip the occupant out.

Glen Koorey

Sat, 16 Aug 2014 18:28:56 +1200

I teach transportation practitioners about design of street environments for walking, and that includes discussion about consideration of universal access/mobility issues (e.g. kerb ramps, tactile pavement markings). While I can present the theory about how to provide for this, I don't think they fully get it until we have a…

Rosemary McDonald

Sat, 09 Aug 2014 09:36:53 +1200

Has Hollywood ever made a movie where an ableist jerk is left crippled in an accident, and is utterly ill-equipped to deal with the world he dumped upon? If not, it’d be the perfect Sundance/Cannes pitch.

One movie comes to mind.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Doctor_%281991_film%29

Not disability per se, but puts the shoe…

Kumara Republic

Sat, 09 Aug 2014 02:27:28 +1200

Has Hollywood ever made a movie where an ableist jerk is left crippled in an accident, and is utterly ill-equipped to deal with the world he dumped upon? If not, it'd be the perfect Sundance/Cannes pitch.

Christine Peet

Fri, 08 Aug 2014 18:38:07 +1200

I was just telling my partner what you said and he agreed. He also said that if there was a magic cure and I could walk tomorrow, he reckons I would take it... the idea frightens me, but who knows.

Rosemary McDonald

Thu, 07 Aug 2014 14:22:42 +1200

I suspect their brief is to present disability in a good light….positive and happy clappy inspirational (although there’s nothing wrong with inspirational…

http://attitudelive.com/blog/red-nicholson/opinion-be-or-not-be-inspiring

stuff to show that all is well in the disability sector. That just by being positive, and putting in the effort, good will rain down upon us.…

Angela Hart

Thu, 07 Aug 2014 11:49:01 +1200

Nothing hugely controversial but I do recall an effort on improving disability parking provision, that's what I was thinking of. I'm in two minds about Attitude, on the one hand it does get some stories told and shows aspects of life with a disability that Joe public doesn't usually notice,…

Sacha

Thu, 07 Aug 2014 11:36:16 +1200

It didn’t used to

Really? I’ve never seen them cover it.

Rosemary McDonald

Thu, 07 Aug 2014 11:08:04 +1200

Attitude avoids politics and controversy. It didn’t used to but ….

Thou shall not bite the hand that feeds you?

Angela Hart

Thu, 07 Aug 2014 00:36:18 +1200

I have tried, and given up, trying to get our two NZ on Air funded disability programmes (Attitude and One In Five) to do a comparison and/or a "walk a mile in my shoes" programme on tetraplegia under ACC compared with tetraplegia under MOH.

Forget it.

Why?

Attitude avoids politics…

Rosemary McDonald

Wed, 06 Aug 2014 16:52:18 +1200

the problem is what you experienced on you day in the chair was the solution to the disability not the disability itself if you have tetraplegia or muscular/skeletal impairment the pain the lack of respect people speaking above you, the hours of preparation getting ready to get to the chair…

Moz

Wed, 06 Aug 2014 10:08:59 +1200

I was taught sayings like "Do as you would be done by" , "Don't judge a man until you've walked a mile in his shoes" , "If you can't say something positive, don't say anything" and "You reap what you sow"

Most of those only work at a meta level,…

Angela Hart

Tue, 05 Aug 2014 18:47:42 +1200

Christine, you wouldn't be the person you are if you were walking, I know many people who would not change their lot, except perhaps in relatively minor ways, but who deserve more respect than they get.

Christine Peet

Tue, 05 Aug 2014 18:08:39 +1200

I concur with you totally Christopher – although I'm in a wheelchair, I don't think I'd want to swap my wheelchair for walking. I've lived my life this way and I'm happy.

Chris Waugh

Tue, 05 Aug 2014 15:13:12 +1200

“Do as you would be done by”

A surprisingly common principle, in that it has been taught by philosophers, prophets, priests, and many others throughout the world since time immemorial. And yet.... as a species, we're astonishingly good at not learning basic lessons.

Angela Hart

Tue, 05 Aug 2014 14:31:55 +1200

Most ABs have grown up in a world where human bodies perform various functions without particular thought or effort. The qualities of applied intelligence, imagination and empathy are not highly developed in our population. Therefore I don't find it surprising that most ABs have very little idea of the impact…

Christopher Dempsey

Tue, 05 Aug 2014 12:06:09 +1200

I don't know how those in a wheelchair can maintain good humour knowing theirs is permanent.

I don't know either but whatever, we (those of us who are differently abled) *have* to maintain it, otherwise it just does our head in. Having a set of different abilities is one thing,…

Moz

Tue, 05 Aug 2014 10:22:11 +1200

(sorry for a slightly off-topic reply)

I've sometimes wondered if he has perfect pitch.

Now *there's* a disability that's interesting to explain to people. It helps some people to think of it as a tape deck in my head. Whatever I can remember, I can remember accurately. And I suspect…

Jeremy Andrew

Tue, 05 Aug 2014 10:05:08 +1200

It takes about 30 seconds of rational thought to figure out that wheelchair accessibility is good for a business (hint: it’s not just wheelchair users whose mobility can be facilitated by ramps and easy-opening doors or lifts) , but many STILL grumble about their legal obligations.
Speaking as someone who…

Sacha

Tue, 05 Aug 2014 07:17:15 +1200

Maybe these simulation exercises help people who have no imagination or limited empathy, but I personally prefer hearing about the experiences of people who deal with this kind of thing on a daily basis.

We need to do a far better job of telling the variety of stories that help…

Sacha

Tue, 05 Aug 2014 07:08:58 +1200

Disagreement is welcome. However,

it seems you think it is better to do nothing.

The post explicitly says other activities need to take centre stage.

You have probably only written this to maintain your own visibility in the disability sector.

I doubt Victoria needs to prove herself to anyone after…

Sacha

Tue, 05 Aug 2014 07:02:49 +1200

many STILL grumble about their legal obligations

Worse, they lobby for those obligations to be removed to save them a few dollars. And this government is so obliging.

TracyMac

Tue, 05 Aug 2014 02:50:45 +1200

The big ear muffs, for example, strike me as both patronising (due to their obviousness) and…

Robyn Carter

Mon, 04 Aug 2014 23:18:17 +1200

Absolutely Brendon – My one day in the chair makes me no expert at all, but it did raise my awareness of some of the common everyday frustrations that someone may experience. That still is a good thing in my book. By the end of the day I was quite…

Brendon Murray

Mon, 04 Aug 2014 23:12:47 +1200

Rose Threadborn

Mon, 04 Aug 2014 23:12:36 +1200

I don't find this kind of conversation very helpful. To me, it reads as an opportunity to put down others, those in government or anyone else that may take part in simulations.

You hate it when non disabled people stereotype people with disabilities, yet here you are stereotyping people who…

Russell Brown

Mon, 04 Aug 2014 21:43:45 +1200

Hearing is an interesting thing with my younger son. He has the same ears as I do, but I know he processes sound really differently. It's one of those things that manifests as a special ability or a disability, depending on context. He is put in psychological pain by unexpected…

Christopher Dempsey

Mon, 04 Aug 2014 21:28:39 +1200

If I could swap my deafness for hearing, I don't think I would – the world is FAR too noisy! But while I sigh about people not 'getting' different abilities, I suspect that for some, they do get it, because they have good empathy skills, and good cognitive skills, that…

Hilary Stace

Mon, 04 Aug 2014 17:26:32 +1200

I agree with you Victoria but I also think some people participating in awareness exercises do it with the best of intentions. Last week several people participated in the NFD's exercise of wearing those yellow ear muffs. It was only for a short time, but were trying to bring the…

Kumara Republic

Mon, 04 Aug 2014 14:41:54 +1200

But, yeah, I think being-disabled-for-a-day stunts are of limited utility.
'Walk a mile in my shoes' experiments seem to work up to a point. Either they provide insight to otherwise thoughtless ableists, or they reinforce the worldviews of thoughtless ableists.

Will de Cleene

Mon, 04 Aug 2014 13:18:56 +1200

As I noted on Mojo's Facebook page the other day, ideally Norms would wear muffs from birth to get the full pre-lingual vibe of deafness. Extending the similie to breaking point, ideally you'd throw in some speech problem malware and a cocktail of drugs that induce tinnitus, high stress and…

Robyn Carter

Mon, 04 Aug 2014 12:43:04 +1200

I'm not sure I agree with this totally. A friend of mine years ago as part of job training, had to simulate being deaf (she worked for a Govt dept at the time). She had to wear ear muffs for the day to simulate being hard of hearing. She found…

WaterDragon

Mon, 04 Aug 2014 12:18:14 +1200

Simulation exercises tend to be beguiling to non-disabled people. This may be for worthy motivations, but they are of really limited use. There's American (and quite possibly from elsewhere) research that points out the negative impact of this "experience it for a wee while" type of simulation exercise. It is…

Russell Brown

Mon, 04 Aug 2014 11:25:42 +1200

It was essential for me to try and understand the experience of my two ASD sons, in order to anticipate the impact of various situations and stimuli on them, and thus guide our own actions as parents – and to fend off some of what we we got from special…

Sacha

Mon, 04 Aug 2014 11:00:25 +1200

Thanks, Victoria. My biggest issue with simulation exercises is when they focus participants too much on their end of the impairment/environment interaction that is disability. Nobody is going to find a wheelchair or blindfold or earmuffs easy to begin with, so the experience can reinforce tragedy stereotypes.

The experience of…

Public Address

Mon, 04 Aug 2014 11:00:25 +1200

Discussion from blog post.