『The Exponential Impact of Physical Access (+audio)』のカバーアート

The Exponential Impact of Physical Access (+audio)

The Exponential Impact of Physical Access (+audio)

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Rebekah Taussig’s book, “Sitting Pretty: The View From My Ordinary Resilient Disabled Body” is one of my favorites.I’ve spent years anticipating my children’s needs and helping them navigate the world’s friction. I thought I understood disability because I lived on its doorstep. However, Taussig’s book caused me to realize I was missing the view from the inside.I don’t actually know what it’s like to be the one with a physical disability.Taussig’s words challenged me to consider points of view that had never crossed my mind. Her book provides a glimpse into the raw, complex emotions of growing up with a physical disability. The hidden, layered costs of being forced to take a separate route. The quiet resignation of opting out—when the effort required to show up outweighs the joy of being there.In addition, she invites readers to consider something that feels both radical and incredibly true.Instead of disability as the limitation, what if a lack of imagination was the actual barrier?Inclusion isn’t better just because it’s kinder. We should bring disabled perspectives to the center because these perspectives create a world that is more imaginative, more flexible, more sustainable, more dynamic and vibrant for everyone who lives in a body.~Rebekah Taussig, Sitting PrettyWhen building a ramp is more than a rampOur local middle school uses the park behind the school for recess. It’s a great little park, and a perfect place for the kids to run and play and get some energy out between classes.However, the school building is at a higher elevation than the park, and when my daughter started middle school, the students’ path required navigating a set of stairs. Someone using a wheelchair, like my daughter did at the time, had to travel around the edge and through a parking lot to get to recess.Because the path crossed through a live parking lot, my kid not only had to take a separate longer route, she had to be escorted by an adult for safety. Having to take this separate, chaperoned path…* Separated her from her friends* Stole her recess time* Stripped her of her independence* And, most absurdly, put her in the path of moving carsThe school lacked the foresight and imagination to see that the staircase wasn’t just a physical barrier—it was also a social barrier that slowed her developmental progress vs. her peers.At our parent teacher conference, the teacher who was escorting my kid on this path literally asked me, “Hey - do you have any ideas on how I can slow her down in that wheelchair? She starts flying so fast down that incline and I worry a car will turn that corner and not see her until it’s too late.”I stood there stunned. However, the problem was not her speed. It was the path.I was already planning to speak to the school board, but this conversation gave me additional fuel.I quoted that teacher at the school board meeting to lay out the stakes: the route wasn’t just inconvenient; it was dangerous. I talked about how this physical barrier was impeding my child’s ability to make social connections. That developmentally, she was artificially being held back due to being stripped of the independence granted freely to her peers.Not because she wasn’t capable. But because the school hadn’t made their campus accessible.I asked for a ramp, and I have to give credit where it’s due.They built it.And they did it in six months.The day it was finished and open for use, I got a text from an aide at the school. She had worked with another child who uses a wheelchair the year before, and had experienced the same daily frustration we had. Through the grape vine she’d learned that I had something to do with it being built.My heart glowed a little while reading her note, because this ramp wasn’t a special favor for my kid. It was a community upgrade.It helped her. But it would also help…Our friend and his aide.Anyone who breaks a leg or sprains an ankle.The mom with the double stroller.The teacher with the bad knee.The toddler on a balance bike.And so many more.Learning to see the real impact of limited accessThe following quotes from Taussig’s book taught me to see more than just the lack of access. It helped me see the social impact. The impact on development. The cost that adds up to much more than the extra moments spent navigating from one place to another.“I don’t know if I fit in. I feel like an outsider with most people. How much is based on the fact that, as we navigate an environment together - the restaurant or park or bumpy sidewalk - a good quarter of my brain power is put into carrying that cup of coffee without spilling it or keeping my eye on the accessible route.”~Rebekah Taussig, Sitting PrettyImagine if you had to always keep one part of your brain dedicated to figuring out whether there is an accessible route you can follow. To locating that path. To scenario planning in case there is no path you can take. To managing the ...
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