Irritations! (parking)

Wed Nov 26 13:05:56 PST 2003

In Omaha, Ne we have what you said a "Disabled Parking Enforcement Team".
I'm on it and I'm a bi-lateral BK that rides a motorcycle while on patrol.
We take classes as not to confront anyone.  If there is any confrontation we
are taught to leave!  When we do find someone parked illegally in a handicap
spot, it is usually with an outdated placard, no handicap emblem on the
plates or placard showing,  or a mutilated or altered tag.  When we do write
the vehicle a ticket, we are taught too take a photo of the vehicle in front
of the handicap sign (from the back of the parking stall), and of the dash
board (cameras are provided by the police department).  This way if the
ticket is contested, there is proof that the vehicle was illegally parked.
Not all "Disabled Parking Enforcement Teams" are bad.   I do know that there
are a lot of stores that actually ask the police department to target their
handicap stalls and the police department calls the "Disabled Parking
Enforcement Teams" to assign us those areas to patrol.  As you said, that we
are not to confront anyone under any circumstances.  If we do leave without
putting the ticket on the vehicle for someone tried to confront us, the
ticket is mailed from the police department with a copy of the photos we
took.  

-----Original Message-----
From: Mary Lou Ayala [mailto:mlayala at juno.com] 
Sent: Wednesday, November 26, 2003 1:50 PM
To: Amputee Information Network
Subject: Re: Irritations! (parking)

Carolyn,

I was so glad to see your post.  This subject is my pet peeve.  When I first
lost my leg in 1967, you didn't see many disabled people in public and there
were no such things as handicapped parking and accessibly issues.  Many
people back then were still of the opinion that disabled people should be
kept at home so as not to embarrass the public. I think the Viet Nam
veterans totally changed the public's awareness to disabilities.  But I'm
getting off the subject.  Anyway, I worked extra hard at learning to walk
more normally and hiding my leg so it wouldn't be so obvious.  I also didn't
get a handicapped sticker until a few years ago.  And low and behold to my
shock, I am constantly harassed and yelled at if I choose to park in one.  I
even went a couple years without ever using my sticker, even when I was
really hurting, just so as to not have to deal with these, "self appointed
guardians of handicapped spaces", as I call them.   

 About 7 years ago, I was sent outside Washington DC for training for my
job.  I had had terrible troubles getting around on that trip and almost
turned around and came home.  Anyway, one evening I went to dinner with some
friends from back home and we used my sticker at the restaurant.  After
being seated, this large obnoxious (and probably drunk) man came to our
table and started yelling at us for parking in the space.  I told him I was
an amputee and couldn't walk very far.  That of course went right over his
head and he continued screaming obscenities at us. We had to get security
involved to make this man go away. I was so upset and angry over this
incident that if I hadn't of had on long pants, where I couldn't get my leg
off without taking off my pants, I would have taken off my leg and thrown it
at him.  I still get upset thinking about it all this time later.  

My community is launching a, "Disabled Parking Enforcement Team".  Isn't'
that just great?  Now any obnoxious public member will have the authority to
harass us and give out citations!  And you know only the obnoxious ones are
going to want to have this authority.  I seem to remember reading in the ADA
that it is against the law to ask someone what their disability is and/or
about their limitations.  This type of program, although I agree is probably
well intended, seems to violate our rights under the ADA and subjects us to
the harassment and discrimination the law was trying to protect us from. 

I actually had a city policeman tell me one time that I wasn't disabled
because I could walk! Go figure. I too have seen people that don't appear to
be disabled and I know there is some abuse, but I think they are taking this
issue a little too far. My mother and mother-in-law have serious heart
problems and can not walk very far. Otherwise, they both "look" as though
they are not disabled. As you said very well, Carolyn, because of my
experiences, I try not to be judgmental when I see someone who doesn't look
as though they need handicap parking. 

I will forever be amazed that the general public is so concerned over
handicapped parking.  I mean how many illegal things do we see in this
country, child abuse, theft, speeding, road rage, welfare fraud, crooked
politicians, etc., that does not even come close to eliciting the same
response from the public as the possibility of someone misusing a handicap
parking space. 

Well, thank you for letting me get on my soap box.

Mary Lou

On Wed, 26 Nov 2003 12:08:24 -0500 "Carolyn Murphy" <cdmurphy54 at hotmail.com
<mailto:cdmurphy54 at hotmail.com> > writes:

Rodger,

I can relate to the dirty looks you were given.  When I first became an
amputee, and walking was still painful and difficult, I used to park in the
Handicapped spaces and I actually had people (TAB) stand outside my car,
waiting to see how "handicapped" I was...  I've had people yell rude things
to me such as "Looks like you've got a really hard walk there..." and people
chasing me, "Miss, Did you know you parked in handicapped?!!"- rude comments
like that.  I was young, only 18 when it happened, so most people I guess
thought I was abusing the parking space, even though I had a permit.  I was
amazed at how mean and unthoughtful people can be.   I see completely able
people park in the handicapped spaces all the time, and I try not to judge,
because as Ryan said, they may have a disability that we can not see. After
my experiences, I would never be so rude as to ask what the nature of their
handicap was though.  

Carolyn

>From: "Rodger Oleson" 
>Reply-To: amp-l at u.washington.edu 
>To: "Amputee Information Network" 
>Subject: Re: Irritations! (parking) 
>Date: Wed, 26 Nov 2003 10:28:27 -0600 
> 
>They had an advertising campaign here a few years ago that went "Look at
the permit not the person" but I don't think that it worked very well!
Duncan 
>~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ 
>I became disabled in '89 due to heart,circulatory and various other
problems. Trouble was that I looked perfectly healthy until you saw me after
I'd walked about 30 feet. Somewhere around 30 yards I had to sit and rest
for about 10 minutes. I sure got a lot of dirty looks when I pulled into
handicapped spaces,even though I had a sticker. Amazingly none of the folks
who were glaring at me were handicapped...only TABS seemed to be upset.
Strange world,isn't it!!! Ole rak 
> 
> 
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