A message to the able-bodied population

Kat Krug
Contributing Columnlist

The month of October boasts the title of “X Awareness Month” for multiple causes: breast cancer, Down’s syndrome, ADHD, spina bifida and domestic violence among a slew of others. All of these are equally important, but week of Oct. 6-10 at VCU was Disability Awareness Week. I’m sure you were unaware.

While people with invisible disabilities deserve awareness, as a person with a visible disability I can only attest to my own experience. As a society, we are lost when it comes to people with disabilities. We forget about 19 percent of the total U.S population. We do not realize when we’re trying to fit our car into that last parking spot on the block and we end up blocking the ramp on the sidewalk that we are infringing upon someone’s civil rights.   

We do not realize when we take the elevator in Hibbs because those stairs are killer or the class is at the end of the day and walking up to the second floor seems an impossible task, that we are making it harder for someone with a disability to get to their class because they literally cannot take the stairs. We do not realize when we use the handicapped stall in the bathroom because it’s more comfortable and private that we are not letting someone in a wheelchair use the stall that was made for them, the stall I must use because my wheelchair won’t fit into the smaller stalls.

We do not realize when we park in a handicapped spot because we just need to run in for a second that we are forcing someone with a disability to park further away from their destination. We do not realize when we use the automatic shopping carts at the supermarket for shits and giggles that we are forcing someone who has difficulties walking to endure extreme pain just to have an ironic Instagram post.

The disabled community cannot and does not participate in these behaviors. In fact, they are  actively to our detriment. I would never consider resticting someone’s access to something they need.

You do not realize how much you hurt me. When your car is parked in front of a curb cut, I cannot use the sidewalk. You do not realize that when you can walk up the stairs perfectly fine and you take the elevator to the second floor instead, I will be late for class because I cannot walk up the stairs and must wait for the elevator to return — you are telling me that your laziness trumps my inability.

When you use the comfy, handicapped stall when all of the other stalls are available, I have to park my wheelchair outside of a small stall, lift my body out, get to the toilet without the help of supporting railings, and pray that I don’t fall. You do not realize that when you park in the handicapped spot for any reason, you are robbing me of a parking spot that I am entitled to and forcing me to walk or roll from blocks away when I could have parked out front. You do not realize that when you use the automatic wheelchair shopping carts just because you can, I cannot fully complete my errands because of how painful walking is.

You do not realize that when you use my accommodations and keep me from using them, you are hurting me.

When an able-bodied person uses something meant for a person with disabilities or questions the necessity of something made for people with disabilities, they are telling people with disabilities that they are worthless, that they will forever be less than an able-bodied person. I have learned that the world is made for able people, and everyone else just has to learn to get by. When the world says “jump,” everyone else asks, “how high?” but I say, “I can’t.” I have learned that I make people uncomfortable, just because I am disabled. I have learned that even in college, people still stare. I have learned that people see me as my disability, not as a person.

The able-bodied acknowledge that disabilities exist, but they continue to block curb cuts, take the elevator to the second floor, use the handicapped bathroom stall, park in the handicapped parking spot and use automatic shopping carts. They do not realize that every disability is attached to a person.

They don’t realize that that person is a contributing member of society who uses sidewalks, enters multistory buildings, uses the bathroom, parks their car, goes shopping and needs the use of these accommodations, which they are legally entitled to. These accommodations are constantly abused by able-bodied people who use them because it makes their lives easier even though they can already do all of those things without any accommodations. Do not take your abilities for granted. Even in what may seem the most trivial situation, you have the ability to do something that someone else does not.

Even if you did not participate in Disability Awareness Week or didn’t even know it was happening, resolve to be more aware. Be more aware of accommodations made for people with disabilities and think about why that accommodation exists. Think about why you don’t require that accommodation. Think about the wider consequences of your actions. Very rarely are any of the instances described earlier done with malicious intent — they are the result of ignorance.