I made it to the door. It was cold. Really cold. My fingers were stinging from having to grab cold metal to push myself along a sidewalk that was heavily salted. It had been a hard push. But I was at the door, warmth waited inside. I pushed the automatic door opener and … it didn’t work. Joe was meeting me there so I was on my own, shit. I pushed two or three more times thinking that maybe one more try will magically open the door.
He told me, and this will stretch your WTF muscles to breaking point, that the door worked it just wasn’t turned on. He showed me the flip switch that would activate the door. He told me that he’d leave it on until I had left. And then you will turn it off, I asked and he said that’s exactly what he intended to do.
Why? I asked
He explained that it annoyed him and a few of the other staff that it was used primarily by non-disabled people out of sheer laziness. It was put there for disabled people.
I said that this policy had meant that I sat out in the cold unable to enter. He again said that he was sorry.and then said that he didn’t have very many disabled people as customers so he didn’t worry about it much.
Ok, forgive me but this is just plain stupid.
Why did he care if non-disabled people used the button, maybe they had boxes and bags, maybe they had baby strollers or were holding on to the hand of a child, maybe they just liked using it.
Seriously, who cares.
Well, he does.
I swear that when it comes to accessibility people are just plain weird about it, and who needs it, and who uses it.
When we left, he came right out to switch the auto door off.
I simply don’t get it.
