#i don't usually use a scooter in my daily life | Explore Tumblr posts and blogs

powerfulkicks · 8 months ago

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man this con experience has really opened my eyes to how ableist the world is.

the staff at the event space were literally audibly making fun of people who use scooters and wheelchairs. literally they yelled at a person with a cane to walk faster.

and the courtyard that's outside is only open til 2 am, after that they literally block it off. thing is, the courtyard is the only way for a disabled person in a wheelchair to get back to the hotel (BECAUSE THEY REFUSE TO FIX THE DISABLED ELEVATOR that usually connects the hotel and the venue) so disabled people have nowhere to even (tho someone, probably another disabled person or a friend of one, moved the barricades so that someone could get through). reminder, this con is supposed to be all hours, so it's conceivable that someone could be out that late. there are panels until very late at night.

and once you get to the hotel, you have to scan your hotel key on the door to get inside. there's a button to open the door for ppl in wheelchairs/scooters/etc, sure, but it DOESNT WORK when the hotel is closed for the night, so you just can't fucking get in if you're disabled and you can't navigate opening the door with your wheelchair/scooter. you have to either have someone with you to open the door for you, wait for a helpful stranger, or try to manage it on your own (which, like, OBVIOUSLY DEFEATS THE PURPOSE OF THE HANDICAP BUTTON).

this is a huge fucking problem!

#i don't usually use a scooter in my daily life #like i use it for cons bc i can't handle walking/standing for that amount of time l #so it's really eye opening to me #also a reminder how some disabled people can have privilege over others #and that's not a bad thing #it's just that we have to fight for ALL of us #and its like. idk. its horrible how powerless it makes you feel.#like you can't do anything about it #makes me mad #and so many people just accept it and move on because they're used to this treatment #it's so fucked up!!!!!!#it makes my fucking blood boil!!!!!!#to be clear tho i don't think it's the con who is responsible #it's the hotel and the event space #the con organizers i think are pretty good about things? not perfect but pretty good #i at least know several people in higher positions that care a lot about this #i wish i could demand that they fix it or else the con would be going elsewhere #i wish i had that power #because it's fucking unacceptable how the disabled are treated like second class citizens #or even directly mocked!

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ryanthedemiboy · 1 year ago

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Same anon - i appreciate your reply! I'm also intending to be neutral tonewise! Sometimes people from other parts of the world misinterpret information about another country because (of course) they have a different frame of reference - so i try to offer a local view.

I only mentioned wheelchairs/scooters because the post was specifically about bike infrastructure so my mind immediately went to other modes of transportation.

While there are, of course, many imperfections about the dutch accessibility overall, i dont think the Netherlands specifically is worse than other European countries. I have lived in both Belgium and Germany and found the differences minimal.

I have observed better bike lanes usually go along with better pedestrian accessibility too - wider sidewalks, traffic lights that 'tick' when its green for the visually impaired, good ramps to wheel onto and off the sidewalk.

I don't use a wheelchair in my daily life but i cannot walk fast or long, so i notice (and need) pedestrian accessibility and imho a lot of dutch cities are not the worst (for pedestrian accessibility as a chronic slow walker at least) (i know "not the worst" is a horribly low bar)

I dont want to speak for accessibility for disabilities i dont have of course. But accessibility does overlap a lot of times so i feel i notice it more than non-disabled people.

Thank you so much! That cleared up a lot of my concerns :D

Some of my concern was def bc of a lack of sleep, winnow that i've slept some, stuff makes more sense, too.

Thank you so much for being patient with me! <3

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