What do you feel like saying or doing first when you meet someone who appears to have a disability?
Throughout my travels, short or long, I’ve encountered all sorts of people: some indifferent, others annoyingly insistent, some decent, others well-intentioned but with limited resources, I’d say.
And on one of these walks, I enter a store, which was sort of on the outskirts of the city, from my estimations. Typically, on a long journey, almost any driver tries to avoid going through the city, as much as possible in our dear Romania, where we know that all cities have a ring road. 😊
To go to the store, I’m assisted by a fellow traveler, whom, let’s understand each other, I didn’t know before. I simply asked for some help, and the kind person served it to me.
I didn’t know anything more than: “Can you please help me, I have vision problems.”
In the store, I think to myself, since I’ve already come down for water, maybe we can solve some other basic needs. 😊
We ask a nice lady, an employee there, where the bathroom is, if they have one… 😊
And the lady, with kindness in her voice but still surprised, says, “She can’t see?”
My companion, with nothing more than a “mmm,” didn’t know how to respond.
I continue towards that employee: “Do you think you can help me find the bathroom?”
The lady says, “Please, come with me,” after taking out some keys from somewhere and extending her arm, not grabbing me, a sign that she knew something about ‘guiding.’
In the 5 meters to the bathroom, she had time to tell me, “I also have a blind brother. I know how it is,” in a tone of pity or something like that.
Or maybe I’m just subjective. 😉
And then she opens the bathroom for me, saying, “This is the special bathroom.”
In my mind, I thought: nice, receptive, but still, didn’t her own experience with her brother teach her to address people with disabilities directly, whatever they may be? I’m just asking. 😉
Something like:
“Are you blind? Or are you visually impaired? Because everyone addresses me as ‘young lady,’ 😊 do you need help?
I approve or decline, and we move on.
Through this example, which may seem trivial, I want to emphasize that even though we may experience some things firsthand, we might not notice some basic things until they are pointed out to us.
We need to talk as much, as often, and as clearly as possible about how we interact with each other, regardless of the characteristics we have. Only then can we build quality relationships with those around us.
I don’t know how you interact with a person with disabilities when you meet them, but I have a simple recommendation, actually two:
Address them directly and don’t assume they need help, ask them! 😉
Share your experience in the comments. How did your contact with someone who appeared to have a disability or perhaps was just disoriented unfold?
#Accessibility_is_not_a_luxury; above all, it’s about how we communicate with each other.
