[nabs-l] Lines

[Arielle Silverman]

Hi all,
Thank you Kirt for making such a great point. When I was growing up my
parents and friends often pressured me to use my blindness so that we
could cut lines and sometimes my parents even required it without
giving me a choice about it. I used to try and justify our behavior
but in  the end when I did this I always felt a deep sense of shame
and anger, but I could never figure out why. Since then I have learned
about self-perception theory in psychology classes and I think I
understand why it bothers me (and many of us) so much. Basically,
self-perception theory posits that we draw conclusions about ourselves
by observing our own behavior. I think whenever I used my blindness as
a reason to get a guest pass and skip the line, it made me start to
see myself as a handicapped or crippled person, which was very
upsetting. For some people who have trouble standing for long periods
of time, or who have guide dogs who get uncomfortable standing out in
the sun, cutting in line seems legitimate. But if we can physically
handle the lines, accepting the special passes doesn't do us any real
favors. I insist on standing in line with everyone else because I want
to see myself (and my fellow blind friends) as strong, healthy, normal
people. I feel I have little to gain by skipping the lines, and much
to lose in terms of self-esteem and self-respect. I think every time
we take an accommodation, we need to think about what we are gaining
from that accommodation vs. what we are potentially losing in terms of
normalcy. If an accommodation like a piece of technology is  truly
necessary, it will give enough benefit that it's worth the self-esteem
hit. But if an accommodation isn't really needed, I think we have more
to lose than we have to gain by accepting it. For this same reason I
also do not write off blindness as a reason to claim a tax deduction.
I am proud to be (barely) earning enough income to be required to pay
taxes and paying taxes just like anyone else in my income bracket
makes me feel good about myself and where I belong in the world.
There's also the argument that if we want to be allowed the same
rights sighted people get, we need to be willing to saddle the extra
responsibilities. If we want to be allowed to ride amusement park
rides without discrimination, we need to be willing to wait in line.
It sends a mixed message to skip the line and then insist on equal
treatment by the ride operators, just like it sends a mixed message to
request unnecessary extra time on tests and then ask for a professor's
letter of recommendation.
Again, though I'm not a dog user, I think having a guide dog is a
legitimate reason to not wait in lines.
Arielle