<html><head><meta http-equiv="content-type" content="text/html; charset=utf-8"></head><body dir="auto"><div>Diane,</div><div>Go to your Uber app go down to the bottom right and you'll find a count double tap on that then go to settings and then at the bottom you'll find Accessibility and under that at the bottom you will find where it says service Animal application you'll answer the two questions and submit and it will be safe. He will not give you anything else. I hope yourself!</div><div><div dir="ltr">Robert Stigile, Second Vice-President<div>National Federation of the Blind of California</div><div>President San Fernando Valley Chapter</div><div>818-381-9568</div><div>Kn6uvd</div></div><div dir="ltr"><br><blockquote type="cite">On Apr 12, 2025, at 2:40\u202fPM, Diane Graves via NAGDU <nagdu@nfbnet.org> wrote:<br><br></blockquote></div><blockquote type="cite"><div dir="ltr">\ufeff<meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=utf-8"><meta name="Generator" content="Microsoft Word 15 (filtered medium)"><style>@font-face { font-family: Helvetica; }
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</o:shapelayout></xml><![endif]--><div class="WordSection1"><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:11.0pt">Good Evening All!<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:11.0pt"><o:p> </o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:11.0pt">I hope you all are doing well.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:11.0pt"><o:p> </o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:11.0pt">I\u2019m wondering where I would go in the Uber APP to set up the self ID. Is this something that can be permanently set, or do we need to set it up on every scheduled ride.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:11.0pt"><o:p> </o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:11.0pt">I do apologize, as I\u2019m sure the information has been shared here before, but I apparently didn\u2019t take notes.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:11.0pt"><o:p> </o:p></span></p><div><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:11.0pt;font-family:"Times New Roman",serif;mso-ligatures:standardcontextual">R. Diane Graves<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:11.0pt;font-family:"Times New Roman",serif;mso-ligatures:standardcontextual"><a href="mailto:rdgraves2007@gmail.com"><span style="color:#467886">rdgraves2007@gmail.com</span></a><o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:11.0pt;font-family:"Times New Roman",serif;mso-ligatures:standardcontextual">317-238-9262<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:11.0pt;font-family:"Times New Roman",serif;mso-ligatures:standardcontextual"><o:p> </o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:11.0pt;font-family:"Times New Roman",serif;mso-ligatures:standardcontextual">\u201cTGIF: TODAY GOD IS FIRST.\u2019\u2014OS Hillman<o:p></o:p></span></p></div><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:11.0pt"><o:p> </o:p></span></p><div><div style="border:none;border-top:solid #E1E1E1 1.0pt;padding:3.0pt 0in 0in 0in"><p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="font-size:11.0pt;font-family:"Calibri",sans-serif">From:</span></b><span style="font-size:11.0pt;font-family:"Calibri",sans-serif"> NAGDU <nagdu-bounces@nfbnet.org> <b>On Behalf Of </b>Julie A. Orozco via NAGDU<br><b>Sent:</b> Saturday, April 12, 2025 1:52 PM<br><b>To:</b> 'NAGDU Mailing List, the National Association of Guide Dog Users' <nagdu@nfbnet.org><br><b>Cc:</b> Julie A. Orozco <kaybaycar@gmail.com><br><b>Subject:</b> Re: [NAGDU] Uber Service Animal Self ID Program<o:p></o:p></span></p></div></div><p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:11.0pt">Hi everyone,<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:11.0pt"><o:p> </o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:11.0pt">Thanks for your responses! I meant to respond earlier, but the work week got away from me. <o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:11.0pt"><o:p> </o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:11.0pt">Al, yes, feel free to share anything from my previous email you think might help Uber staff implement this program. <o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:11.0pt"><o:p> </o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:11.0pt">First, yes, I reported, and I was able to report in the app. I asked the driver to cancel, hoping that would force the reporting mechanism to activate, and it did. Fun fact though; I spoke to an investigator, relayed my story, and was only given a $15 Uber credit for the discrimination. I never found out what happened to the driver, if anything. <o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:11.0pt"><o:p> </o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:11.0pt">It is good to know that the service animal training is in at least the top ten languages. That is a start, I suppose.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:11.0pt"><o:p> </o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:11.0pt">I think the frustrating part about all of this is that Al is correct. Ignorance of the law should be no excuse. We have no trouble enforcing other laws in our country, so why are our nondiscrimination laws the outlier? <o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:11.0pt"><o:p> </o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:11.0pt">As for the cultural part, it would be most helpful to get people from these cultures to help us advocate. I\u2019m not sure how we do this exactly, but it certainly would improve outcomes if someone from a culture where many people fear dogs spoke with someone from the same place, who could explain what service animals do and that they aren\u2019t to be feared, particularly when they are working. I wish we had more Uber and Lyft drivers as allies, speaking to their groups and communities, because we know those groups exist, about how they need to follow the law and take service animals. Sometimes this entire problem makes me feel as though we disabled people are in a vacuum trying to be heard by people who aren\u2019t listening. <o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:11.0pt"><o:p> </o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:11.0pt">I think an educational campaign would help, but a really good one. We could make videos about what service animals do, how they behave, how they should look in the car, etc. I don\u2019t know what form the service animal training takes when drivers sign up for Uber and Lyft. But given the increased denials people experience in general, and given the amount of people trying to pass Fluffy the toy yippy dog off as a service animal, the public service media might just generally do some good in society. If guide dog schools can share their cute puppy media, so can we. We just have to come up with the funds and the creativity to make it look top noch professional. Media and social media are great tools to leverage for education, and we could do more to get our voices heard in those spaces. Would it stop the discrimination? I don\u2019t know, but spreading the word might help people understand more about service dogs so at the very least, we could have more allies. People break these laws, in part, because they don\u2019t understand them, and they know they can get away with it. The more people in our society are aware of our rights as service animal handlers, the less people might believe they can get away with violating them. <o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:11.0pt"><o:p> </o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:11.0pt">Of course, the enforcement piece of all of this is the hardest. Getting Uber and Lyft to enforce the law is proving to be the most difficult. If these companies enforced the law, we wouldn\u2019t be here, would we? At this point, we\u2019ve had a consent decree; we\u2019ve negotiated; we\u2019ve even protested. This is where I\u2019m stuck on what to do, but I am of course always interested in continuing the discussion. It makes me so sad that there are people who don\u2019t want to return for successor dogs because this problem persists. <o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:11.0pt"><o:p> </o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:11.0pt">Sorry for the long email again. Thank you for all of the thoughts though. <o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:11.0pt"><o:p> </o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:11.0pt">Julie<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:11.0pt"><o:p> </o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:11.0pt"><o:p> </o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:11.0pt"><o:p> </o:p></span></p><div><div style="border:none;border-top:solid #E1E1E1 1.0pt;padding:3.0pt 0in 0in 0in"><p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="font-size:11.0pt;font-family:"Calibri",sans-serif">From:</span></b><span style="font-size:11.0pt;font-family:"Calibri",sans-serif"> NAGDU <<a href="mailto:nagdu-bounces@nfbnet.org">nagdu-bounces@nfbnet.org</a>> <b>On Behalf Of </b>Leslie Hamric via NAGDU<br><b>Sent:</b> Thursday, April 10, 2025 11:57 AM<br><b>To:</b> <a href="mailto:nagdu@nfbnet.org">nagdu@nfbnet.org</a><br><b>Cc:</b> Leslie Hamric <<a href="mailto:lhamric930@comcast.net">lhamric930@comcast.net</a>>; Al Elia <<a href="mailto:al.elia@aol.com">al.elia@aol.com</a>>; <a href="mailto:nagdu@nfbnet.org">nagdu@nfbnet.org</a><br><b>Subject:</b> Re: [NAGDU] Uber Service Animal Self ID Program<o:p></o:p></span></p></div></div><p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal">Sadly, I think this problem with rideshare denial is going to be solve by thinking way outside the box. I don't have any suggestions at the moment but I think it might be a good idea to start exploring some new ones. Are ones to build on what already has been done.<o:p></o:p></p><div><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom:12.0pt">Leslie Hamric<br>Cello and Braille Music Teacher<o:p></o:p></p></div><div><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom:12.0pt"><o:p> </o:p></p><blockquote style="margin-top:5.0pt;margin-bottom:5.0pt"><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom:12.0pt">On Apr 10, 2025, at 8:49<span style="font-family:"Arial",sans-serif">\u202f</span>AM, Al Elia via NAGDU <<a href="mailto:nagdu@nfbnet.org">nagdu@nfbnet.org</a>> wrote:<o:p></o:p></p></blockquote></div><blockquote style="margin-top:5.0pt;margin-bottom:5.0pt"><div><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family:"Tahoma",sans-serif">\ufeff</span> <o:p></o:p></p><div><div><p><span style="font-family:"Arial",sans-serif">JAnine \u2013 do you have any suggestions as to how a private company is supposed to lawfully produce media that addresses cultural biases that other cultures ahve against people with disabilities? Keep in mind that our laws also protect against discrimination based on national origin, so companies would have to produce largely the same media in all languages, and not target drivers based on their background or language. Imagine how the community would react to companies messaging drivers that while they may have been brought up to believe that people with disabilities must be protected from themselves and always accompanied by a family member, the laws protect their right to live independently, and that sometimes they do that by using a helper animal called a service animal. Everyone would pile on the company for that messaging: Disability advocates and progressives would cry foul at the notion that the company was paying even lip-service to regressive ideas , while disability advocates and conservatives would berate the companies for coddling beliefes that go against the law.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p><span style="font-family:"Arial",sans-serif">For better or worse, we delegate lawmaking to lawmakers. We then require people to comply with the law. One of the first things we learned in law school was that ignorance of the law is no excuse. That rule is one of the reasons why laws and regulations must be publicly available, so that no one can claim that they had no notice of a law they are accused of breaking. The rideshare companies are providing additional notice to drivers that they must not only comply with the law generally, but that they must specifically comply with the specific laws protecting our right to travel with a service animal. They are doing that in the languages that the drivers are most commonly using to ensure that the drivers cannot claim a lack of notice. There is no cultural issue I am aware of regarding obligations of contracts or violations of tcontractual terms. If a driver agreees to those terms, and then doesn\u2019t so comply, they should swiftly be removed from the platforms, not be educated based on cultural differences before or after the fact.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p><span style="font-family:"Arial",sans-serif">I suggest that the best way to address a cultures bias against people with disabilities is to take a hard stance against that bias. We don\u2019t attempt to address other cultural biases with gentle education. We would not attempt to educate a white contractor who refused to hire or do business with non-white people by telling them that, notwithstanding the beliefs they may have regarding the work ethics or trustworthiness of non-white people, they can\u2019t rfuse to hire or do business with them. In fact, if we did, we would ourselves be guilty of perpetuating those discriminatory beliefs. The same goes for cultural biases against us as people with disabilities.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p><span style="font-family:"Arial",sans-serif">That said, if you have ideas for how to address cultural biases in a manner that does not discriminate based on national origin and does not perpetuate discrimination against us, I welcome discussion of those ideas.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p><span style="font-family:"Arial",sans-serif">Yours,<o:p></o:p></span></p><p><span style="font-family:"Arial",sans-serif">/Æ<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom:12.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial",sans-serif"><o:p> </o:p></span></p><p><span style="font-family:"Arial",sans-serif">On 9 Apr 2025, at 16:39, Jenine Stanley wrote:<o:p></o:p></span></p></div><blockquote style="border:none;border-left:solid #777777 1.5pt;padding:0in 0in 0in 4.0pt;margin-left:0in;margin-top:5.0pt;margin-right:0in;margin-bottom:3.75pt"><div id="B3BDCAE3-369C-4882-9B60-200D222A60F6"><div><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family:"Arial",sans-serif;color:#777777">That\u2019s great that the notification is in different languages but that doesn\u2019t address people\u2019s culture. If people with disabilities are never seen and have no agency in their culture, how can we expect them to recognize the phrase \u201cservice animal\u201d? <o:p></o:p></span></p><div><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family:"Arial",sans-serif;color:#777777"><o:p> </o:p></span></p></div><div><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family:"Arial",sans-serif;color:#777777">I\u2019ll say it again, not making excuses for denials. Just trying to give some advocacy ideas because the current scheme isn\u2019t working as well as we thought or it should. <o:p></o:p></span></p></div><div><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family:"Arial",sans-serif;color:#777777"><o:p> </o:p></span></p><div><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom:12.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial",sans-serif;color:#777777"><o:p> </o:p></span></p><blockquote style="margin-top:5.0pt;margin-bottom:5.0pt"><div><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family:"Arial",sans-serif;color:#777777">On Apr 9, 2025, at 4:18\u202fPM, Melissa Allman via NAGDU <<a href="mailto:nagdu@nfbnet.org">nagdu@nfbnet.org</a>> wrote:<o:p></o:p></span></p></div><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family:"Arial",sans-serif;color:#777777"><o:p> </o:p></span></p><div><div><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:11.0pt;color:#777777">Leslie thanks this is interesting.</span><span style="color:#777777"><o:p></o:p></span></p></div><div><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:11.0pt;color:#777777"> </span><span style="color:#777777"><o:p></o:p></span></p></div><div><div style="border:none;border-top:solid windowtext 1.0pt;padding:3.0pt 0in 0in 0in;border-color:currentcolor currentcolor;border-image: none"><div><p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="font-size:11.0pt;font-family:"Calibri",sans-serif;color:#777777">From:</span></b><span class="apple-converted-space"><span style="font-size:11.0pt;font-family:"Calibri",sans-serif;color:#777777"> </span></span><span style="font-size:11.0pt;font-family:"Calibri",sans-serif;color:#777777">NAGDU <<a href="mailto:nagdu-bounces@nfbnet.org">nagdu-bounces@nfbnet.org</a>><span class="apple-converted-space"> </span><b>On Behalf Of<span class="apple-converted-space"> </span></b>Leslie Hamric via NAGDU<br><b>Sent:</b><span class="apple-converted-space"> </span>Wednesday, April 9, 2025 4:05 PM<br><b>To:</b><span class="apple-converted-space"> </span><a href="mailto:nagdu@nfbnet.org">nagdu@nfbnet.org</a><br><b>Cc:</b><span class="apple-converted-space"> </span>Leslie Hamric <<a href="mailto:lhamric930@comcast.net">lhamric930@comcast.net</a>>;<span class="apple-converted-space"> </span><a href="mailto:nagdu@nfbnet.org">nagdu@nfbnet.org</a><br><b>Subject:</b><span class="apple-converted-space"> </span>Re: [NAGDU] Uber Service Animal Self ID Program</span><span style="color:#777777"><o:p></o:p></span></p></div></div></div><div><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="color:#777777"> <o:p></o:p></span></p></div><div><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="color:#777777">According to Brianna, the service animal notification has been translated into the 10 most spoken languages.<o:p></o:p></span></p></div><div><div><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom:12.0pt"><span style="color:#777777">Leslie Hamric<br>Cello and Braille Music Teacher<o:p></o:p></span></p></div></div><div><div><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom:12.0pt"><span style="color:#777777"><o:p> </o:p></span></p></div><blockquote style="margin-top:5.0pt;margin-bottom:5.0pt"><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom:12.0pt"><span style="color:#777777">On Apr 9, 2025, at 12:33</span><span style="font-family:"Arial",sans-serif;color:#777777">\u202f</span><span style="color:#777777">PM, Jenine Stanley via NAGDU <<a href="mailto:nagdu@nfbnet.org">nagdu@nfbnet.org</a>> wrote:<o:p></o:p></span></p></blockquote></div><blockquote style="margin-top:5.0pt;margin-bottom:5.0pt"><div><div><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family:"Tahoma",sans-serif;color:#777777">\ufeff</span><span class="apple-converted-space"><span style="color:#777777"> </span></span><span style="color:#777777">The only thing I can add to this discussion is a question about potential training for drivers. Are we as \u201cservice animal\u201d groups enlisting allies within the driver community of various ethnic groups, who speak various languages? Sometimes the message comes over better from someone in your peer group. <o:p></o:p></span></p></div><div><div><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="color:#777777"> <o:p></o:p></span></p></div></div><div><div><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="color:#777777">Not to make excuses at all for denials but I had one recently like yours, Julie, in which the person had no idea what service animal meant, what guide dog meant, what Seeing eye Dog meant. I had to tell him I was blind and this was my helper dog before he understood. Then he was fine and we had a lovely trip but prior to that we were at a standstill. <o:p></o:p></span></p></div></div><div><div><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="color:#777777"> <o:p></o:p></span></p></div></div><div><div><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="color:#777777">I\u2019m wondering if we\u2019re assuming too much and not factoring in our own cultural sensitivity when it comes to the training ride share companies provide. <o:p></o:p></span></p></div></div><div><div><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="color:#777777"> <o:p></o:p></span></p></div></div><div><div><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="color:#777777">Otherwise, I\u2019m incredibly frustrated on your behalf, Julie as I keep reading accounts of denials like yours. <o:p></o:p></span></p></div><div><div><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom:12.0pt"><span style="color:#777777"><o:p> </o:p></span></p></div><blockquote style="margin-top:5.0pt;margin-bottom:5.0pt"><div><div><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="color:#777777">On Apr 9, 2025, at 9:35</span><span style="font-family:"Arial",sans-serif;color:#777777">\u202f</span><span style="color:#777777">AM, Melissa Allman via NAGDU <<a href="mailto:nagdu@nfbnet.org">nagdu@nfbnet.org</a>> wrote:<o:p></o:p></span></p></div></div><div><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="color:#777777"> <o:p></o:p></span></p></div><div><div><div><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:11.0pt;color:#777777">Hi Julie. I\u2019m so frustrated on your behalf. The driver should get a notification that says \u201crider has a service animal.\u201d If they hit cancel at that point, the app reminds them that it\u2019s against the law and Uber\u2019s policy to deny access. If they still hit cancel, then it\u2019s supposed to trigger a streamlined complaint process available to you in the app or through a link in your email. If the drivers ignore the pop-up and just arrive and see you and then decide they don\u2019t want to take you and cancel, I would think that the pop-up in your app about filing a complaint should still pop up. What was your experience? Were you easily able to file complaints either with the link in your email or the prompt in the app, or did you have to dig around in the menus like we normally had to do and file a complaint that way? This of course assumes that people just have time to monitor what they\u2019re getting in the app and file complaints somewhat contemporaneously, but I still wanted to ask what your experience was on that front.<span class="apple-converted-space"> </span></span><span style="color:#777777"><o:p></o:p></span></p></div></div><div><div><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:11.0pt;color:#777777"> <span class="apple-converted-space"> </span></span><span style="color:#777777"><o:p></o:p></span></p></div></div><div><div style="border:none;border-top:solid windowtext 1.0pt;padding:3.0pt 0in 0in 0in;border-color:currentcolor;border-image: none"><div><div><p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="font-size:11.0pt;font-family:"Calibri",sans-serif;color:#777777">From:</span></b><span class="apple-converted-space"><span style="font-size:11.0pt;font-family:"Calibri",sans-serif;color:#777777"> </span></span><span style="font-size:11.0pt;font-family:"Calibri",sans-serif;color:#777777">NAGDU <<a href="mailto:nagdu-bounces@nfbnet.org">nagdu-bounces@nfbnet.org</a>><span class="apple-converted-space"> </span><b>On Behalf Of<span class="apple-converted-space"> </span></b>Julie A. Orozco via NAGDU<br><b>Sent:</b><span class="apple-converted-space"> </span>Tuesday, April 8, 2025 9:34 PM<br><b>To:</b><span class="apple-converted-space"> </span>'NAGDU Mailing List, the National Association of Guide Dog Users' <<a href="mailto:nagdu@nfbnet.org">nagdu@nfbnet.org</a>><br><b>Cc:</b><span class="apple-converted-space"> </span>Julie A. Orozco <<a href="mailto:kaybaycar@gmail.com">kaybaycar@gmail.com</a>><br><b>Subject:</b><span class="apple-converted-space"> </span>[NAGDU] Uber Service Animal Self ID Program</span><span style="color:#777777"><o:p></o:p></span></p></div></div></div></div><div><div><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="color:#777777"> <span class="apple-converted-space"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></p></div></div><div><div><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:11.0pt;color:#777777">Good evening fellow guide dog users,</span><span style="color:#777777"><o:p></o:p></span></p></div></div><div><div><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:11.0pt;color:#777777"> <span class="apple-converted-space"> </span></span><span style="color:#777777"><o:p></o:p></span></p></div></div><div><div><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:11.0pt;color:#777777">I hope all of you are doing well. I am *<b>finally</b>* working my third guide dog, a male chocolate lab from The Seeing Eye, called Xavier. He\u2019s a wonderful dog and a joy to work.</span><span style="color:#777777"><o:p></o:p></span></p></div></div><div><div><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:11.0pt;color:#777777"> <span class="apple-converted-space"> </span></span><span style="color:#777777"><o:p></o:p></span></p></div></div><div><div><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:11.0pt;color:#777777">Of course, working a dog brings about the inevitable Uber denials. I\u2019ve gotten three so far, and we\u2019ve only been home a couple of weeks. (Uber and Lyft are really terrible in the DC area.)</span><span style="color:#777777"><o:p></o:p></span></p></div></div><div><div><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:11.0pt;color:#777777"> <span class="apple-converted-space"> </span></span><span style="color:#777777"><o:p></o:p></span></p></div></div><div><div><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:11.0pt;color:#777777">For some reason, Sunday was just a bad day for me and Uber. I have self ID turned on, so drivers should be notified when they arrive that they are picking up someone with a service animal and that they are required by law to allow us in their car. At least, that was my understanding. But these drivers seem unable to understand the self ID notification. Either that, or they are not being notified properly.</span><span style="color:#777777"><o:p></o:p></span></p></div></div><div><div><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:11.0pt;color:#777777"> <span class="apple-converted-space"> </span></span><span style="color:#777777"><o:p></o:p></span></p></div></div><div><div><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:11.0pt;color:#777777">I had three drivers on Sunday going to and from a friend\u2019s house. The first driver took me, only when I pointed to my eyes and told him I was blind and that my dog was working. (Sometimes, looking blind has its advantages.) He did not understand when I asked him if the app told him I was traveling with a service animal.</span><span style="color:#777777"><o:p></o:p></span></p></div></div><div><div><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:11.0pt;color:#777777"> <span class="apple-converted-space"> </span></span><span style="color:#777777"><o:p></o:p></span></p></div></div><div><div><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:11.0pt;color:#777777">The second driver, the one who was set to take me home, refused us access. He did not speak English, but even when my friend and I pulled out Google translate, he would not budge. He said no dogs in his car and even canceled the ride. I am not sure if he received the notification, but he seemed totally clueless about the whole service animal thing. I don\u2019t think he was faking it either because if so, he wouldn\u2019t have wanted to cancel the ride himself.</span><span style="color:#777777"><o:p></o:p></span></p></div></div><div><div><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:11.0pt;color:#777777"> <span class="apple-converted-space"> </span></span><span style="color:#777777"><o:p></o:p></span></p></div></div><div><div><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:11.0pt;color:#777777">The third driver didn\u2019t want to take me at first either. I had to explain to him what my dog was for, and once I did, he got it. I asked him if he received the notification, and he said yes but that he didn\u2019t get a chance to read it. He said he could just get passed it without reading it.</span><span style="color:#777777"><o:p></o:p></span></p></div></div><div><div><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:11.0pt;color:#777777"> <span class="apple-converted-space"> </span></span><span style="color:#777777"><o:p></o:p></span></p></div></div><div><div><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:11.0pt;color:#777777">So, my questions follow. Are drivers being notified and trained about their requirements under law to take service animal teams in their language of choice? Second, what does the notification system look like? I imagined something that would pop up and force them to read before proceeding with the trip. How are so many of my drivers seeming confused about me and my guide dog? Is this still happening to anyone else? Or do I live in the land of Uber access denials?</span><span style="color:#777777"><o:p></o:p></span></p></div></div><div><div><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:11.0pt;color:#777777"> <span class="apple-converted-space"> </span></span><span style="color:#777777"><o:p></o:p></span></p></div></div><div><div><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:11.0pt;color:#777777">I was hesitant about self ID, but I am happy with it because it doesn\u2019t alert the drivers until they arrive. It\u2019s like Uber telling them for me when I\u2019m right there that the driver has to follow the law and take me with my service animal. But it\u2019s not effective if drivers can just ignore the notifications.</span><span style="color:#777777"><o:p></o:p></span></p></div></div><div><div><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:11.0pt;color:#777777"> <span class="apple-converted-space"> </span></span><span style="color:#777777"><o:p></o:p></span></p></div></div><div><div><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:11.0pt;color:#777777">Apologies for the long email, and thank you for any perspective you can provide.</span><span style="color:#777777"><o:p></o:p></span></p></div></div><div><div><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:11.0pt;color:#777777"> <span class="apple-converted-space"> </span></span><span style="color:#777777"><o:p></o:p></span></p></div></div><div><div><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:11.0pt;color:#777777">Julie<span class="apple-converted-space"> </span></span><span style="color:#777777"><o:p></o:p></span></p></div></div><div><div><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:11.0pt;color:#777777"> <span class="apple-converted-space"> </span></span><span style="color:#777777"><o:p></o:p></span></p></div></div><div><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:9.0pt;font-family:"Helvetica",sans-serif;color:#777777">_______________________________________________<br>NAGDU mailing list<br></span><span style="color:#777777"><a href="mailto:NAGDU@nfbnet.org"><span style="font-size:9.0pt;font-family:"Helvetica",sans-serif">NAGDU@nfbnet.org</span></a></span><span style="font-size:9.0pt;font-family:"Helvetica",sans-serif;color:#777777"><br></span><span style="color:#777777"><a href="https://us-west-2.protection.sophos.com/?d=nfbnet.org&u=aHR0cDovL25mYm5ldC5vcmcvbWFpbG1hbi9saXN0aW5mby9uYWdkdV9uZmJuZXQub3Jn&i=NjI1ZDgxMTcwOTJkZmIxMTY4Yjg5YmVj&t=c1p4T3Jybk4rWGl0TFd5MFZ0SitnSmFBQ2lIMkhNMFFtTDhsbUtFd09Daz0=&h=ecdfa5a37c1848b3a1eae6236e887d13&s=AVNPUEhUT0NFTkNSWVBUSVbhg2ccKTTmDzPWPipY7ki5gHWxWWA-XVK0a7HioI1KmA"><span 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