urbancripple

[urbancripple]

Hi, are abled people allowed to follow you?

Yes. Why wouldn’t they be?

[urbancripple]

#wheelchair #disability #ableism #wheelchair etiquette

[urbancripple]

I use a manual wheelchair because of fatigue and dizzyness and leg weakness. I can actually walk longer than I can stand. The problem is, I cannot get the chair into my car. I am not strong enough. I was thinking of getting a rollator. They are lighter, compared to my 40 lb chair, and easier to fit. Do you think this is a good idea? And do you know a cheaper brand that still has the seat and wheels?

I don't often say this but here we go....

I actually think that's a good idea.

If you can walk alright but you can't stand very long, that's the problem a rollator was meant to solve. And rollators are fairly light, easy to obtain, and not terribly expensive. As far as brands go....

I have no idea. But I'm damn sure someone else on here does.

[urbancripple]

To able‐bodied people, wheelchair users have a certain mystique. They’re constantly asking us about how our bodies do or don’t work, whether we can have sex, why we haven't just killed ourselves yet. But despite their intrusive questioning, there is one area that ableds seem to be absolutely certain about: the existence of ultra‐convenient readily‐available accessibility modifications and mobility aids.

As wheelchair users, how many times have we been told to “put some chains on that thing!” As we struggle through the snow? How often is it suggested that we get a hand‐bike so that we can cycle to work like our coworkers? If I had a nickel for every time someone suggested I attach some tried‐and‐true motor to my chair, I’d have enough money to pay someone to invent it.

People are constantly sending me links to articles and videos to supposed life‐changing mobility aids that can climb stairs or move over rough terrain. They tell me that things can’t be that difficult with a constant stream of new, convenient doo‐dads being put out in the world. Hell, when discussing how difficult it is to find a single‐story home in Seattle (existing or custom), the suggestion was made that I simply build a multi‐story home but also put an elevator in.

Here’s the thing though: has anyone, wheelchair‐user or otherwise, actually seen any of these so‐called solutions in person? The stair‐climbing wheelchair? The magical snow tires? The super fast motor? I haven’t. As for the elevators and hand bikes, I can count the number I’ve seen on one hand and I’d need way more fingers and toes to show you the price tag.

Despite their near non‐existence or insurmountable financial cost, people keep telling me I just need to “get me one of those…” and continue to cast my existence and the problems that come with it in a mythical light.

An elevator for your house starts at around six‐thousand dollars. If you want one that doesn’t look like the rickety stair‐lift at your local Eagle’s Club, it’ll cost you upwards of sixty‐thousand.

The price of an average, entry‐level bike is four‐hundred bucks. If you want an accessible hand bike, you’re going to start around a grand.

Custom wheelchair tires can vary anywhere from two to five thousand, often times costing more than the chair they’re attached to.

That stair climbing chair? Eleven grand. Want something that’s a little more “every day”? That’ll cost you seventeen grand. Just need a motor for your day chair? Six grand and it weighs fifteen pounds.

Now, some folks might be thinking “sure, it’s expensive now, but the price will come down as technology improves and more people buy these devices”. But with an employment rate of roughly 7 percent (before COVID) and rules governing the amount of money disabled people on SSI can have in the bank (no more than two-thousand dollars), most wheelchair users can’t even save up to buy one of these devices. And no, insurance won’t cover any it.

A lack of accessibility is not something we can just “tech” our way out of and disabled people should not expected to purchase access to a world that everyone else gets for free. Talking about mobility aids you’ve never used or seen when someone is trying to explain to you the barriers they face in their day to day life due to a lack of accessibility isn’t helpful, it’s dismissive. Quit doing it.

[urbancripple]

I am developing a game that centers around a main character who uses mobility aids. I have worked with my team to develop some game mechanics that I want to make sure are not going to end up being offensive in some way or a misrepresentation of disabled people. You do not have to awnser if you do not feel comfortable, or if you know of a better place to get insight on this matter that would be greatly appreciated.

The main character is an ambulatory wheelchair user. And uses forearm crutches when not in a wheelchair. They have the super power to control metals which they use to create mobility aids for themselves on the go. One of their moves is to covert one of their crutches into a sword temporarily to attack enemys. They will also have a dash feature while using a wheelchair. The last main feature would be the main character having to use a wheelchair when their health gets too low.

Please let me know if any of these would be harmful or if there is anything you suggest to make this a better representation of an ambulatory wheelchair user.

Thanks!

I've got two whole sections of answered questions you might find helpful:

Disability representation

Writing about disability

The first question I always bring up when someone mentions they are making something where the main character has a disability is "Why?" Why did you choose to make your character have a disability? What's the goal? Are you doing it to try and improve disability representation in media? Or are you doing it because it makes it easier to gain empathy from the audience without having to develop a meaningful backstory?

Much like how showing cruelty in a character is a hack writer's way of saying "This guy is evil!", giving a character some kind of disability is the hack writer's way of saying "Adversity! Perseverance! Inspiration!"

So again I ask "what are you doing?"

All of that aside, if you want me to just answer your question directly I'll say this:

The last main feature would be the main character having to use a wheelchair when their health gets too low.

Don't do this. It's bad. It implies that a wheelchair is somehow the lesser of the mobility aids and it implies that the only time one should need to use a chair is when our health or energy levels offer no other alternative. I used to use crutches almost exclusively unless I was going to be going long distances. Crutches made me easier to travel with, get into cars with, and able to navigate areas that were less accessible for my chair.

It made me convenient for other people. And left with with lasting damage to my joints and put me at risk of serious injuries for falls.

Using a chair exclusively is a freedom for me. it is not a device of last resort.

[urbancripple]

The guide is now live. Thank you to everyone who provided feedback and offered improvements on the original draft.

If you like what I do and want to support me, you have a bunch of cool options:

Stop scrolling, click on the link and actually read what I’ve written on my site. This helps improve my Google rankings and grow my audience. Tumblr does nothing but steal my content and traffic.

Reblog this article (after you’ve read it) and help spread the word.

Become a Patron on my Patreon Page

Make a purchase (of any kind) using one of my Amazon Associate links

Follow me on Twitter

[urbancripple]

I've been working for 22 years and I've only encountered another wheelchair user once and he was only at the company for, like, 6 months. It's exhausting. And before you chime in here with like "I feel you! I have <not a wheelchair user diagnosis> and I hardly ever see..." Stop. Don't. Please. I'm not interested. Maybe just read what I have to say, and take it in. Oh, and since I wrote more than three sentences in the article, I'll save you guys the effort: #longpost

[urbancripple]

Like in Ireland we didn’t even go for the straps or the moving people out of the way, the bus just loses the ramp and you get on. Everyone jostles on those buses and the ticket inspectors are practically non-existent, only checking tickets for those on the twelve o’clock, midday buses, never the morning and evening buses when most people use them because that would be so much more work for them at the times of day/night when they’re tired. So if you know the times you can simply ride for free. Same with the Luas.

Yep. Other countries have better or at least different systems.

[urbancripple]

From deep in the archives....

Watch: Poet reveals what it’s like to have sex when you have a disability

[urbancripple]

Disability Thought Experiment

It can be difficult to understand how inaccessibility affects disabled people. So, I created a small thought experiment to help people better understand the issue.

Imagine accessibility issues as a series of awkward, and repetitive conversations you have to take part in. Whether it’s opening a door or moving through a restaurant, you have to talk to someone before you can continue. How many times will you stop and talk to someone before you stop entering these spaces? How many conversations are you willing to have before it’s no longer worth the struggle to go about your day?

Every time you want to open a door, you have explain to the person in charge of it that you need to enter. Then, wait for them to find the key, unlock the door, and allow you through it. Every door, every time.

When you board a bus, it’s a thirty second conversation. You tell the driver you need to board, where you will sit, and where you will be getting off.

Stairs are a nightmare as it takes a forty‐five to sixty‐second explanation with someone at either end to go up or down.

Restaurants are agonizing as you talk your way through narrow passageways of people. You spend a few seconds with each person, apologizing for interrupting their meal.

What if there’s no one to talk to? What if there’s no one watching the stairs? Or the bus driver can’t understand you? What if the door attendant is on their lunch break? What then? You sit there awkwardly conversing with passers by. They’ll smile, nod, and maybe even take a second or two to lament the utter lack of available door or stair attendants. But they cannot help you.

This is what it is like to be disabled and have to navigate through a world that is not designed for you. You’re constantly having to explain yourself to complete the most basic of tasks. This is why real accessibility is so important for people with disabilities. Without it, we spend all our time stuck in these “conversations” instead of doing what we need to do.

#rerun #archives #a repost of an old article I wrote

[urbancripple]

i realize this is The Opposite of being an urban cripple (lol), but as we approach spring, i wondered if you had any recommendations/advice on making gardening accessible? back pain, limited mobility/grip strength, being a wheelchair user... wherever you feel like taking this one. :P

Here's an answer: https://urbancripple.com/ask-me-anything/how-to-i-garden-in-a-wheelchair

Short, sweet, and to the point.

If you want more detail, holler.

Just a reminder to folks who roll their eyes when I post a link: I maintain a site separate from Tumblr so that:

Folks have a more accessible experience when using a screen reader

A soulless corporation doesn't own my content

I can actually figure out how many people read my shit

So please click the link and go to the site and read it.

#gardening #wheelchair

[urbancripple]

7 years later and it's still true.

If You’re Gonna Make Something Wheelchair Accessible, Don’t Make it a Thing

Here’s some examples awkward accessibility being a thing:

Your at a hotel that has a lift to get you from one sub-floor to another, but the lift can only be unlocked and operated by one specific person that the hotel now has to go find. Sure, they’ve made the entrance to the sub-floor is accessible, but now it’s a thing.

The buses are wheelchair accessible but the driver has to stop the bus, take 30 seconds to lower the goddamn ramp, move passengers out of their seats, hook up the straps and then secure you in the bus. Sure, they’ve made the busses accessible but now it’s a thing.

The restaurant has an accessible entrance, but it’s past the trash room and through the kitchen. Sure, the restaurant is accessible, but now it’s an insulting thing.

Here’s some great examples of accessibility not being a thing:

The train to the airport pulls up flush with the platform. I board with everyone else and sit wherever the fuck I want. Riding the train is accessible and not a thing.

In Portland, I press a button the side of the streetcar and a ramp automatically extends at the same time the door opens. I board in the same amount of time as everyone else. This is not a thing.

I get that it is difficult to design for wheelchair accessibility, but folks need to start considering the overall quality of the experience versus just thinking about meeting the minimum requirements.

[urbancripple]

Narrow Entry

If any of you are wondering why wheelchair users don't live in cheaper, smaller, older square footage houses or apartments, look at the size of the doors.

In some homes built before 1990, closet and utility doors could be 18 inches.

Interior doors are narrower in older homes too.

You can't live in a home that you would struggle to get through the front (or bedroom or bathroom) door of.

If you want wider, more accessible doors you need to look at newer construction. And newer construction always costs more!

#wheelchair #accessibility #doors #interior design #construction

[urbancripple]

Since this has picked up steam, I just wanna add that if you want to actually make improvements to wheelchairs...

make stuff that is designed to fit on to an existing wheelchair!

Don't say "I made a special luggage set that can attach to the back of a wheelchair!"

Say: "I made an adapter that fits most standard luggage sets and lets you easily attach them to the back of your wheelchair!

Don't say "I made a new power chair with extra light long lasting custom batteries!"

Say "I made an extra light long lasting battery that will fit most standard power chairs."

Don't make a new wheelchair - make better after market parts: forks, casters, suspension systems, footrests, etc., Make them affordable and backwards compatible with most chairs.

Be like Spinergy, not Omeo.

"Innovations"

Entrepreneur: I've improved the wheelchair by...

Actual Wheelchair Users: Making it cheaper?!

Entrepreneur: ...creating a wildly inconvenient version for seven bazillion dollars that weighs as much as a grown man, goes 100mph and can't be taken on a plane.

Actual Wheelchair Users: What?! No, I can't afford a basic chair that meets my medical needs.

Entrepreneur: I just want to improve people's lives...

Actual Wheelchair Users: Make insurance pay for the perfectly reasonable, normal, not weird wheelchair my doctor prescribed for me.

Entrepreneur: But... but...innovation...disruption.

[urbancripple]

"Innovations"

Entrepreneur: I've improved the wheelchair by...

Actual Wheelchair Users: Making it cheaper?!

Entrepreneur: ...creating a wildly inconvenient version for seven bazillion dollars that weighs as much as a grown man, goes 100mph and can't be taken on a plane.

Actual Wheelchair Users: What?! No, I can't afford a basic chair that meets my medical needs.

Entrepreneur: I just want to improve people's lives...

Actual Wheelchair Users: Make insurance pay for the perfectly reasonable, normal, not weird wheelchair my doctor prescribed for me.

Entrepreneur: But... but...innovation...disruption.

#wheelchair #disability #innovation

[urbancripple]

Look, I put a ton of time and energy into this one and I want y'all to go click the link, read it, and leave a comment or reblog it with a quote or some shit.

If you wanna see more stuff from me (and more stuff like this) on this hell site, you need to actually read the shit I put out that's more than a paragraph long and not a fuckin' listicle. There's even pictures in this one! And video!

#wheelchair #disability #kickstarter

[urbancripple]

#disability #wheelchair #kickstarter