NTs Are Weird

As I’ve talked about the right for disabled people to fly with essential assistive devices, I’ve received responses such as “flying is not a right.” Essentially, there is a belief held by many (if not most) non-disabled people and, unfortunately, a significant amount of disabled people, that our rights only extend to the most basic of human needs.

It’s true that the ability to take an airplane to a far-away land isn’t a right, for anyone. It’s also true that airplanes pollute, and that there are negative consequences to air travel. That said, I don’t argue for the right to universal air travel, nor do I argue that there are no negative consequences.

Instead, I argue simply for the right to access. This means that there should not be additional barriers for disabled people that non-disabled people don’t have to face. This means that we should have physical access to businesses and government, we should be able to use transportation, we should be able to use the telephone, etc. Sometimes that means we’ll use an elevator instead of an escalator, buses will need to be equipped with automated audio announcements of stops, and telephone relay services will be utilized. These are things which give us equal access, not special privilege. It’s not a privilege if disabled people have the same ability to utilized a service as non-disabled people, even if the service itself is a privilege.

Within the context of discussions on access, it’s inappropriate to talk about whether or not the service being accessed is a privilege, destroys the environment, or goes against someone’s personal moral values. Don’t like air travel, because you see it as an excess of the rich that is contributing to global warming? Fine. Talk about it, preach about it, scream about it if you must. But don’t support a policy that only targets disabled travelers. You can support access at the same time you oppose the service being accessed - this is not contradictory.

When access is only a right when the service being accessed fulfills a basic human need (eating, water, or shelter - and then only when it meets the need, not exceeds), we are building a society with a permanent lower-class of disabled people. Why are most disabled people unemployed and poor (note that the many - some studies claim the majority of - disabled people who want to work cannot work because of lack of access)? Because access is seen as a privilege, not a basic human right.

That’s the wrong view though. Access is a human right. I will not be delegated to a lower class that has basic meeds met - but no access to “privileges”.

The response to my letter to the UK DfT, with good news:

Dear Joel

Yes, you will able to take your electronic speech aid into the aircraft cabin. During these times of heightened security, you should carry a doctor’s letter/medical certificate, in order to facilitate your passage through central search.

I hope this response gives you reassurance, and that you have a good trip.

Yours sincerely,

John

Some background - the UK currently prohibits all electronic devices from flights departing in the UK. They are currently the only nation doing this. This is a letter I sent to the UK Department for Transport disability access subdivision (I’ll post any response I receive):

I am a US citizen who travels for leisure to the UK. I also fly through the UK onward to other destinations. In fact, before the recent terror scare, I was planning a trip to visit another European country - because I’ve had such good experiences in the UK in the past, I was even planning to spend half of the trip in the UK, and to connect through London Heathrow. I am now rethinking my plans. Fortunately I did not yet buy air tickets - I still plan on going to my destination, although the UK segment of the trip is certainly not nearly as certain. Note that I typically travel solo.

I have a speech disability that makes it difficult or impossible to speak at times, especially when tired or stressed (which is pretty common for travelers in airports world-wide right now).

I note that the current regulations would require placement of my electronic speech aid in the aircraft cargo hold if I were to fly from the UK to the US. Besides for the obvious problem this causes for my ability to communicate, I also note that neither the airlines nor any government assumes responsibility for it’s loss. Basically, I would not only be without a way to communicate on the flight, but I’d lose my ability to use my device for several months at least while I figured out how I would find the money to replace a device that costs several thousand pounds.

This communication aid is not something that’s “optional” to me, like a business traveler’s laptop. Leaving it at home simply is not an option.

I also note that my alternatives to the electronic device - namely pencil and paper - are also not listed among the allowed items currently. In other words, if speech was not an option while I was traveling from the UK to the US, I would find myself with no usable means of communication with airline staff, security persons, police, other passengers, etc. I find this unacceptable and to be a violation of basic rights, no different than if you placed a gag over every passenger’s mouth prior to allowing them through security. I would also have no means of communication during my attempt to clear immigration in the US, as my baggage is not available to me until I clear immigration at any US airport I’ve flown through. Trying to clear immigration with no communication other than being able to hand an immigration officer a passport does not sound like something I’m keen to try anytime soon.

I hope I’m misunderstanding the current policy. I understand that the current increase in security is in response to a threat, and that it is likely the restrictions will be eased at sometime in the future. However, I’d like assurance that my human rights would not be violated by the UK government simply because I made the mistake of flying from the UK to the US sometime in the future. An exception for assistive devices of all types is a fundamental right for disabled people.

I will be posting this letter and any response received on several Internet groups populated by persons with disabilities.