[blparent] Disney World

Wed Sep 7 15:46:28 UTC 2011

Aaron,
Your husband is right.
I marched in a fife and drum corps for years.
We performed at Disney a number of times.
I had a group of friends I'd hang out with and we liked to ride every roller coaster in the park. It didn't matter which amusement park we were at, we'd have this goal and then we'd do all that we could to meet it.
Disney told me "Everybody in your group can use the fast pass"
When they told me this, it was myself and maybe five other friends. As word spread among the corps (a group of about two hundred) our group kept getting bigger and bigger and bigger.

It was awesome!

-----Original Message-----
From: blparent-bounces at nfbnet.org [mailto:blparent-bounces at nfbnet.org] On Behalf Of Erin Rumer
Sent: Thursday, September 01, 2011 11:19 PM
To: 'NFBnet Blind Parents Mailing List'
Subject: Re: [blparent] Disney World

Bridget,

Blindness is a physical disability in itself whether some like to admit that
fact or not.  My face is heeling right now from running into a display at a
store that had hooks sticking out at face level, so if blindness doesn't
affect us physically then why am I sporting a black eye?  The last time I
checked with my doctor my eye condition was due to a retinal deformity and
wasn't something in my head.  Blindness comes with its own true challenges
and I don't think that someone who is "just" blind should feel bad to take
the fast pass lane, (which by the way is not a cutting technique but rather
a special separate line to make it faster).  I've known folks who are such
blind Nazis about "being like the rest" that they make things more difficult
on the sighted people around them causing people in front of them to endure
cane beatings for 90 plus minutes just so they can be in the line too.  Most
of my friends are sighted and they feel comfortable enough in telling me the
truth in how they perceive people that act this way and trust me when I say
that sometimes those who are trying to prove a point so much are actually
standing out and creating a stereotype more than anyone.  My husband made a
great point the other night when we were talking about this very thing when
he said, "People aren't going to think anything negative about people who
are blind taking the fast pass lane, but rather just wish that they were
part of their family." SMILING

Like you said Bridget, people just need to do what they're comfortable with
because that's what works for them.  I have friends in wheelchairs that
would be highly offended to hear that some think the fast pass lane is for
their type because as one of my dear friends says, "I'm the only one with a
chair to sit in for these long lines so it's everyone else standing who I
feel sorry for".  Now that particular friend has a manual chair and is very
physically strong while another friend of mine might use a shorter line
since she's in an electric chair and doesn't want to drain her entire
battery for one silly ride.  By the way, the fast pass lane at DW is used by
tons of "able bodied people" because many pay more to get a permanent fast
pass in order to use such lines so us blind would stand out no more than the
sighted, beautifully sculpted football player also standing in line. GRIN

Food for thought,

Erin

-----Original Message-----
From: blparent-bounces at nfbnet.org [mailto:blparent-bounces at nfbnet.org] On
Behalf Of Bridgit Pollpeter
Sent: Thursday, September 01, 2011 7:29 PM
To: blparent at nfbnet.org
Subject: [blparent] Disney World

Erin,

We all have to make choices that work for us as individuals and that we're
comfortable with.  The comments Mary Jo and others have made about
perceptions and taking preferential treatment need to be viewed in context.

Blindness itself is a sensory disability and does not affect our physical
being.  Cutting through a line at a theme park is intended for those with
mobility issues or other concerns that may make standing for long periods
difficult.  Again, blindness in no way creates a reason we can't stand.
However, if blindness is compounded by a condition, such as back pain, that
causes you to have difficulty standing, I think we would all agree this is a
perfectly acceptable reason to use the special line.

These comments were meant to be addressed to the issue of blindness and not
other conditions or disabilities.  Mary Jo's comments were not directed to
anyone who may have true physical concerns.  Obviously cutting to the
beginning of a line so you did not have to contend with pain or instability,
would be a reason why such a thing was created.
For those who do not have conditions making physical movement a problem,
though, they should consider how their actions affect the rest of us.
Yes we live our lives, and no, we shouldn't always have to make a point, but
in a world where blindness is still considered one of the worse
disabilities, perhaps we, who happen to be blind, should be more cognizant
of what we do and say and how this may be perceived.

Perhaps people won't think much if we cut to the beginning of a line, but
when cutting is not necessary, why take the chance of perpetuating
stereotypes and negative perceptions just to receive a perk?  We claim we
want equal treatment and to be normal, but then we take preferential
treatment- it's an oxymoron.

Sincerely,
Bridgit Kuenning-Pollpeter
Read my blog for Live Well Nebraska.com at
http://blogs.livewellnebraska.com/author/bpollpeter/

Message: 10
Date: Wed, 31 Aug 2011 15:22:16 -0700
From: "Erin Rumer" <erinrumer at gmail.com>
To: "'NFBnet Blind Parents Mailing List'" <blparent at nfbnet.org>
Cc: "'Hartle, Jesse'" <JHartle at nfb.org>
Subject: Re: [blparent] [blaring] Disney World
Message-ID: <002601cc682c$71d97c30$558c7490$@gmail.com>
Content-Type: text/plain;       charset="us-ascii"

Everyone has their own opinions about things like the fast pass lanes but
for me, since I'm paying the same price that everyone else is and missing
out on a ton of visual entertainment, the fast pass evens it out for me.
Talk about saving time too!  A lot of popular rides can take up to 90
minutes or longer and the fast pass lane takes long enough as it is usually
cutting 30 minutes or so off of that.  I guess it's not such a huge deal if
you get to go to DW every year since you have an ample opportunity to see
all the attractions, but when you have to save for years to have a limited
amount of time to see as many attractions as you can, you have to try and
make the most of your time.  I don't feel entitled to get this perk, but I
definitely don't feel guilty using it since there are so many visual things
I'm missing out on so it's making my experience more enjoyable to make up
for that.  I'm not insecure about my disability at all and know that others
aren't thinking of me any differently for going through this kind of line
and if some do, who cares!  Those types are going to think things anyways so
I might as well get onto a ride in a reasonable amount of time.  In short,
people who are blind or visually impaired should just do what they
personally feel comfortable doing and try and be understanding and
non-judgmental about the different choice someone else makes.  Something
else is that I have chronic back pain that allows me to still do most
everything but if I had to stand in lines all day just to get onto a few
rides I would be torn up by the end of the day which would diminish my fun
tremendously.
Sometimes we can really spoil our own fun just to try and prove a point.
My vote is to just have fun, take the few perks when they come because
they're rare, and relax and enjoy yourself.

Food for thought,

Erin

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