[nabs-l] Fwd: [Members] Airline apologizes for forgetting blind teen

[Katie Wang]

Hello, all,
  I agree that we should be careful about passing judgment on this
girl and the situation. Yes, she should have been more assertive;
getting out her cane and walking in the general direction toward the
front of the plane should have gotten her the assistance she needed,
and it is odd that no other passenger offered help as everyone was
getting off the plane. However, as Daryl said, it is typical for many
airlines to ask passengers requiring special assistance to be the last
to get off the plane, so if she was asked to do this then forgotten,
she would definitely deserve an apology from the airline. Also, keep
in mind that this may have been her first time flying alone, and her
nervousness about the new situation may have affected her judgments.
In any case, I wouldn't put all the blame on this blind girl without
having more information, and it may not be entirely appropriate to
label this article as "bad press" on the blind.

On 5/15/10, Steve Jacobson <steve.jacobson at visi.com> wrote:
> We need to be careful to lay too much blame on her without more information.
>  First, we don't know if there were other
> disabilities involved.  Second, you have to fiercely fight for any
> independence on airlines, and the fact that we do is
> largely because of airlines' actions.  Frankly, this might be one of the
> more blatent situations I have heard of, but over
> the years I've seen and even experienced other cases where one can fall
> through the cracks when one turns over
> one's independence to the airlines.  The fact is that many blind people see
> the airlines as figures of authority who cannot
> be challenged.  This is true especially since 9/11.  Let's learn from this
> story that we need to control our own destinies
> and we need to help others know that is what needs to be done.  Let's be
> careful of condemning her, though, without
> knowing more.
>
> Best regards,
>
> Steve Jacobson
>
> On Sat, 15 May 2010 20:17:14 -0500, Harry Hogue wrote:
>
>>This is ridiculous.  At least be proactive in mentioning your needs, even
>> if
>>you are not comfortable with traveling off the plane yourself.  And of
>>course, if you make headlines, naturally the airline will apologize; they
>> do
>>not want the adverse publicity resulting from not apologizing, etc.
>
>
>>-----Original Message-----
>>From: nabs-l-bounces at nfbnet.org [mailto:nabs-l-bounces at nfbnet.org] On
>> Behalf
>>Of Sarah Alawami
>>Sent: Saturday, May 15, 2010 6:19 PM
>>To: nabs list list
>>Subject: [nabs-l] Fwd: [Members] Airline apologizes for forgetting blind
>>teen
>
>>I think she should have gotten off the plain by her self. How hard can that
>>be? just  get off and turn right and go up the ramp thing and turn left and
>>get out and then wait for your escort. but here's the story.
>
>>Airline apologizes for forgetting blind teen
>
>>Edmonton Journal , May 15, 2010
>
>>United Airlines has apologized to a blind woman from Vancouver Island who
>>was abandoned on an empty plane in Chicago.
>
>>Jessica Cabot of Courtenay, B.C., made headlines this week after she went
>>public about being forgotten in an empty United Airlines plane on an April
>> 7
>>stopover in Chicago.
>
>>The 18-year-old was waiting for flight attendants to escort her to a
>>connecting flight to Florida when she heard the plane door seal shut. Ten
>>minutes later two maintenance staff happened to find her on an unscheduled
>>check of the plane.
>
>>She panicked in the plane, calling for help.
>
>>After a series of complaints, Cabot received a $250 airline voucher and the
>>promise of an apology. Five weeks after her flight and a series of news
>>stories later, she finally got one.
>
>>"They just called," said Cabot, on the phone from Jacksonville, Fla., where
>>she is visiting her fiance. "I can't even count how many times they said
>>sorry."
>
>
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