I’ve been thinking about Durango’s response when the guy from out of state filed a bunch of “drive-by” American’s with Disabilities Act lawsuits; people started criticizing the local disability community.
When Southwest Center for Independence tried chalk “No Access” stencils as a harmless and humorous way to point out some of the local businesses that are inaccessible to people with physical disabilities, there were many negative comments in The Durango Herald and Cortez Journal online.
Every year when SWCI celebrates the ADA by doing a little street theatre, we are told that we are coming across badly and should ask nicely instead. Nearly every time we try to share with businesses what might be done to welcome people with disabilities, we are ignored or told we are wrong.
I’ve been thinking about this because I visited Steamboat Springs and saw how accessible that community is, even to the point of having elevators on the sidewalks so people can get to balcony businesses.
The same guy filed drive-by lawsuits in Steamboat, but instead of getting upset that they should have had a warning about obeying a 26-year-old law, every one of those businesses called their local center for independent living to ask for help.
Northwest Colorado Center for Independence visited each place of business, helped the business owners figure out what was needed and wrote a letter to the court getting the lawsuits dismissed.
The ADA has been in place for 26 years. There is no “grandfather clause.” People with disabilities want to participate in the communities where they live. Twenty percent of us will be impacted by disabilities in our lifetimes, and that number will probably grow as the baby boomers age. Baby boomers want to live in their homes instead of moving to more restrictive facilities. Disabilities will touch all of us at some point in our lives.
SWCI has expertise around access for people with disabilities, and we would be delighted to help you figure out how to increase your business by increasing access for your customers.
Martha Mason
Durango
Editor’s note: Martha Mason is executive director of Southwest Center for Independence
