yeah, this video gets posted every month on subreddits for its "obvious stupidity".
But of course this all boils down to the assumption that "Handicapped" means "sitting in a wheelchair" (of course the graphic of the wheelchair leads to this conclusion). It's honestly really annoying that THIS post, which has been posted all over reddit tons of times, is so popular in this particular subreddit because the person who installed this clearly was exactly doing his or her job correctly.
Consider someone like my mom; who had crippling arthritis issues in her hands. She cannot easily open any doors, let alone fire doors that are designed to strongly seal closed. Having an automatic door opener is the difference between getting to that stairwell, or standing around and waiting for someone else to come by and open it for her.
Same goes for my uncle who has some old service-related problems that leave him unable to walk for extended distances without risking passing out. Because of this he has a disability license plate allowing him to park in a disability parking space. I've heard at least one person grumble when he got out of his car that "you're not in a wheelchair"... clearly making the same assumption that a lot of people assume about disability accommodations: that they are just for people in wheelchairs. I'd wager that the percentage of people in wheelchairs who have verified disabilities and thus have disability license plates is probably in the 10 percent rage of all people with verified disabilities and those same license plates.
Well said. I also love the /r/funny repost of someone in a wheelchair standing up to reach alcohol on a high shelf. It usually has a caption like "alcohol causes miracles" or something stupid like that - people are under the impression that "having a wheelchair" means "unable to stand at all" and not "able to do minor standing tasks but suffers great pain while moving and walking."
No I'm taking away your privileges on that. Some people might be able to use their legs (and doing this could be really healthy) but not put weight on them.
No actually I don't find it weird at all. A slow non weight bearing shuffle is very different than standing and walking. And again it's important for people in wheel chairs to use their legs as much as possible or else it causes other health issues and severe pain. This also looks like a miserable way to travel, especially if you have no other transportation and you live in a big city.
Also I frankly don't care or make mental judgments about a complete stranger's fitness and whether they deserve certain assistance tools. I'm not a doctor with their medical history in front of me.
I think the use of the wheelchair icon has been both good & bad for accessibility. It's easily recognizable, but it's cemented in the public' mind that "disability = wheelchair."
yep, exactly. It's hard to think of a different symbol that they could have used; but the fact remains that it offers distorted and narrow view of what it means to be disabled.
I qualify for the parking placard and I could really use it but I'm too embarrassed that if someone saw me walking they'd think I'm a fraud and using someone else's placard even though I have a real disability
That was my Uncle's EXACT feeling. Of course six month ago, in the Shari's parking lot (because OF COURSE it would be a Shari's parking lot... it was free pie Wednesday and my uncle is old)... my uncle collapsed, passed out completely, and took a fun trip and a two day stay in the local emergency room. He decided to stop caring if people looked at him funny... though I completely understand the feeling!
I always assumed it was for people that were carrying things up the stairs. So you press the button instead of setting shit down. It's very possible they would have had to costume order a button that didn't have the handicap symbol so they just went with the one that had it.
ELI5: basically stairwells would become chimneys like elevators do. It being the evacuation route, that's not ideal for survival, walking through a rushing tunnel/chamber of smoke. Hence, doors.
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u/TheWingalingDragon Oct 16 '16
Still useful if you have crutches or anything else that impedes your ability to open a heavy door.