[nagdu] Blind Brockton woman says Seeing Eye dog not allowed intorestaurant

[Mark J. Cadigan]

There must be some sort of way to teach the general public about guide dog 
access legislation. The Patriot Ledger is my home town news paper and I live 
a few miles away from the area where this incident took place. Brockton MA 
is an interesting town to say the least. This man referred to might not 
understand American law. This might partly explain this incident.

----- Original Message ----- 
From: "Ginger Kutsch" <gingerKutsch at yahoo.com>
To: "'NAGDU Mailing List,the National Association of Guide Dog Users'" 
<nagdu at nfbnet.org>
Sent: Friday, June 11, 2010 10:01 AM
Subject: [nagdu] Blind Brockton woman says Seeing Eye dog not allowed 
intorestaurant


> Blind Brockton woman says Seeing Eye dog not allowed into
> restaurant
> By Maria Papadopoulos
> ENTERPRISE STAFF WRITER
> Posted Jun 11, 2010 @ 01:38 AM
>
> BROCKTON, MASS.  - Claire Crowell says she could not see the man
> who refused to let her Seeing Eye dog accompany her into a city
> restaurant.
>
> She could only hear him - and his words stunned her.
>
> "He said, 'I don't care, you can't come in here with the dog,'"
> Crowell, 69, said while standing next to the dog, Vixen, in the
> kitchen of her Brockton home Thursday afternoon.
>
> Crowell said she and a friend went to the Chinatown restaurant on
> Oak Street Extension on Wednesday for lunch.
>
> When she walked inside with Vixen, she said a male employee told
> her she could come in, but to leave the dog outside.
>
> Crowell said she told the employee that federal law allows her to
> bring a guide dog into the restaurant, but the man refused the
> dog again. Crowell then left the restaurant.
>
> "I felt embarrassed and violated, you know? It's very
> embarrassing," Crowell said, crying. "It's hard enough to be a
> disabled person, but when you're treated like that, it's not
> fun."
>
> The federal Americans with Disabilities Act requires
> privately-owned businesses that serve the public to allow people
> with disabilities to bring their service animals onto business
> premises in whatever areas customers are generally allowed. The
> law applies to businesses including restaurants, hotels, retail
> stores, taxicabs, theaters, concert halls and sports facilities.
>
> State law says that whoever deprives a physically handicapped
> person this right may be fined $300 and is liable for civil
> action.
>
> At Chinatown restaurant on Thursday, employee Dominic So said
> that he refused to let Vixen, Crowell's dog, into the restaurant
> on Wednesday.
>
> "I work here. I have the right to stop the dog," said So, 50. "I
> won't let a dog in the restaurant."
>
> When informed of the federal law that allows a guide dog to be
> inside the restaurant, So said, "I have no clue."
>
> "The dog can wait outside," So said. "When she eats, she doesn't
> need the dog. When she walks, she needs the dog. I understand
> that."
>
> So said that Crowell could have people assist her inside the
> restaurant, but the dog should stay outside.
>
> "I just can't let a dog in the dining room when I have customers
> dining here," So said. "If she insists I violated her rights,
> there's nothing I can do. I'm right to refuse a dog in the
> restaurant."
>
> Businesses refusing guide dogs is seen regularly, and often
> results from a misunderstanding on the part of business owners,
> said Chris Danielsen, spokesman for the National Federation of
> the Blind in Baltimore.
>
> "You simply have to educate the business owner," he said. "If a
> business owner actually refuses, it can lead to seeking charges
> to being filed."
>
> "It's obviously very upsetting to the person that it happens to,"
> he added.
>
> If Crowell made a complaint to police, officers would go to the
> restaurant to explain the law to employees, police Lt. Tom
> LaFratta said.
>
> "If they still refuse, I would take punitive action," LaFratta
> said.
>
> Crowell said she formerly worked as a medical assistant before an
> autoimmune condition led to the deterioration of her eyesight
> over the past three decades. She became legally blind in the
> 1990s.
>
> Hugging Vixen, she said she relies on the part golden retriever,
> part Labrador retriever on showing her the way.
>
> "The dog is my eyes," she said. "She is supposed to see for me
> and guide me where I need to go."
>
> Maria Papadopoulos can be reached at
> mpapadopoulos at enterprisenews.com.
>
> Source:
> http://www.patriotledger.com/business/x1602635111/Blind-Brockton-
> woman-Seeing-Eye-dog-not-allowed-into-restaurant
>
>
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