[nabs-l] handy cap parking

Sat May 16 05:05:46 UTC 2009

Hi all,

I think this topic is very interesting and an important one for us to
discuss periodically, and to examine from all sides.

Personally, like many of you, I’ve always had an aversion to using
things like handicapped parking passes, cuts in line or discounts
because of my blindness (I don’t have additional disabilities). It’s
something I don’t have to think about; just on the gut level I tend to
get angry when people try to force these things on me, and have been
this way since I was a child. I never quite understood why I had this
strong reaction until a couple years ago when I really started to
think about it from a psychology  perspective. For me, I realize it’s
not just about the ethics of taking something I don’t really need or
using a limited resource (like handicapped parking space) that really
belongs to someone else. My motive is a lot more self-interested than
that. I think that as blind people we are constantly having to balance
our fundamental desire to see ourselves as competent, strong,
effective individuals against the negative messages we continually get
from society about how weak, incompetent, and “handicapped” we are
because of our blindness. If I accept a perk such as a disability
discount or a pass meant for those with physical disabilities, it’s
threatening to my self-concept—I start to see myself as “handicapped”
or “broken” which threatens my concept of myself as a healthy and
effective person. So I tend to avoid taking these perks as much as
possible in order to preserve my positive self-concept, and I think
that’s why a lot of us avoid them on principle even if no one else is
watching and even if it’s not really hurting anyone else.

However, Jim brings up the other side of the issue which I think is
worth exploring. One could say, “Why is it bad to use a disability
discount but OK to use a student discount or for our parents to use an
AARP/senior privilege?” After all, if blindness is just a
characteristic then why not take advantage of whatever we can get by
virtue of having that characteristic? Why is blindness any different?

Indeed, I have no qualms about using my student bus pass or a student
discount at the movies, but would consistently protest using a
disability bus fare. And if you think about it, why are students and
seniors getting discounts? Does it mean that students and seniors are
perpetually poor and can’t pay the full fare, like we argue that
disability discounts imply that disabled people can’t be gainfully
employed?

I don’t know the whole answer to this question but I suspect part of
it lies in the fact that being a student or a senior is a temporary
condition, whereas being blind usually is a stable (and more or less
permanent) characteristic. I don’t find it threatening to accept a
student discount but I would be uncomfortable with paying a lower fare
because I am a woman, for instance, and would find the existence of
special  perks for women quite demeaning. I will (hopefully) not be a
student for the rest of my life, but I plan on remaining blind and
female forever and so accepting special treatment or advantages based
on either of these characteristics feels threatening to my overall
concept of who I am. I think that disability-related special treatment
is also more stigmatizing because people with disabilities are such a
small minority (and the blind are an even smaller group), so we tend
to feel more “singled out” by being treated differently than if we
were part of a larger group. I have told a story here in the past
about a time when I was required to use an elevator rather than the
stairs on a middle school field trip, and how awful the experience
felt for me then. I won’t go into the details again, but just point
out that even though taking the elevator was physically easier, I paid
the price of being singled out and separated from everyone else (there
was just one other student in the elevator and he had a broken leg).

Of course, there are times when we legitimately need special
treatment, and even a few situations in which having a special parking
pass might be warranted. I don’t think we should all try to be
superheroes and do everything exactly the same way as the sighted in
order to preserve our positive views of ourselves. But, in cases where
special treatment is nice but not necessary, there is something to be
said for politely declining, blending into the crowd, and maybe
challenging yourself a bit in the process. For example, if I’m not in
a rush, I generally don’t use an escort at the airport and I don’t
preboard. Sure, I could preboard and it wouldn’t negatively impact any
other passengers. But, I’ve learned a lot, met some interesting
people, and definitely refined my travel and problem-solving skills by
doing it this way. And, it just feels really liberating to blend in
and to be able to tell yourself, “I did this and blindness didn’t even
factor into the equation”.

What do you guys think?

Arielle

On 5/16/09, pajohns1 at vt.edu <pajohns1 at vt.edu> wrote:
> Antonio,
>
>         I got the placard because of my blindness.  Whenever possible I
> prefer not to use it, but given the choice of taking a handicapped parking
> place or having to drive to the other side of campus to look for one I will
> use it.  Virginia Tech has a very small population of people with
> disabilities, and while I agree in principle that blindness may not be as
> great a challenge as using a wheelchair it is still a disability.  I would
> love to be able to drive (but that's not happening anytime soon), and as
> soon as I can I'll shred my placard, till then I will use it on the rare
> times when I feel it is appropriate for me to use it.
>
> Patrick
>
> ----- Original Message -----
> From: "Antonio Guimaraes" <aguimaraes at nbp.org>
> To: "National Association of Blind Students mailing list"
> <nabs-l at nfbnet.org>
> Sent: Friday, May 15, 2009 12:28 PM
> Subject: Re: [nabs-l] handy cap parking
>
>
>> Patrick,
>>
>> You use the parking plaque when it's convenient, not because you're blind?
>>
>> Antonio M. Guimaraes Jr.
>>
>>
>> ----- Original Message -----
>> From: <pajohns1 at vt.edu>
>> To: "National Association of Blind Students mailing list"
>> <nabs-l at nfbnet.org>
>> Sent: Thursday, May 14, 2009 8:08 AM
>> Subject: Re: [nabs-l] handy cap parking
>>
>>
>>>
>>>        I have had a handicapped placard for two years now.  I only use it
>>>
>>> when it is raining or in places where the parking is particularly bad.
>>> If the weather is good or if there is plenty of parking available the
>>> placard is not used.  I doubt I use the placard more than once a month,
>>> having it gives me ease of mind.
>>>
>>> Patrick
>>> @Virginia Tech
>>>
>>> ----- Original Message -----
>>> From: "Dezman Jackson" <jackson.dezman at gmail.com>
>>> To: "National Association of Blind Students mailing list"
>>> <nabs-l at nfbnet.org>
>>> Sent: Thursday, May 14, 2009 4:37 AM
>>> Subject: [nabs-l] handy cap parking
>>>
>>>
>>>> Do any of you have handycap parking stickers?  What are your thoughts on
>>>>
>>>> these, excluding those who have secondary physical disabilities?  Have
>>>> you ever felt pressure from others to get one of these?
>>>>
>>>> Dezman
>>>> _______________________________________________
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>>
>>
>>
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