82. Americans with Disabilities Act

            There is a law in our country that is relatively new but it requires us as a nation to take care of our disabled citizens. It’s called the Americans with Disabilities Act. It requires such things as handicap accessible rest rooms in all public buildings, wheelchair accessible entries, elevators in multi-storied buildings and handicap accessible curbing on our streets and sidewalks. Most able bodied people don’t think much about it, but if you’re in a wheelchair and have no room to transfer to a toilet, what are you supposed to do? This law requires us all to think about that when we construct buildings. I think it’s a wonderful law.

            Part of my admiration for this law is the fact that I have a handicapped son who sometimes uses a wheelchair. For the most part he’s fine with a normal toilet, but he struggles with stairs and curbs. There is a bit of education that we as parents have to sometimes give to people when they don’t understand his handicap. He has a mitochondrial disease that severely limits his mobility even when it doesn’t confine him to a wheelchair. I remember taking a last handicap parking space in a very full lot and we had all just gotten out of the car when a woman stopped behind us and questioned why we were in a handicap space. Teacher alert: teachable moment. A part of me thought (if I wouldn’t have been making my son walk too far) about giving her the space since she had a broken ankle, but then I realized she wouldn’t see the outcome or feel significant guilt and at that point I certainly felt no qualms about depriving someone who was feeling entitled because of a temporary injury. That incident empowered my family to be real advocates for my son, but also others. There sometimes aren’t enough handicap spaces and at some time we will all need a space. We’re, hopefully, all going to get old. So that’s a wonderful American law for which I am thankful.