School children and
adults fighting their way through Munich by wheelchair
In this article school children and adults
complain about what they have to fight against to travel around in Munich. They
explain how broken or foul-smelling lifts and with transport
staff and members of the public complaining about delays due to wheelchair users,
hinder their progress several times each week.
One of
the school children suggested that everyone should spend one day out and about
in a wheelchair. Then they would know what there is to fight against.
One of my
stroke clients expressed a similar sentiment this week when he described when
he was in court defending himself in a case to receive a care allowance. It was
suggested that it was not necessary as in a few months he would be as right as
rain again!
My client
did not go as far as to suggest that the speaker of these words should suffer a
stroke, but that he should spend a year in a wheelchair with the problems that
the stroke had given my client. Whether this had an influence on the outcome we
cannot know but the result was in favour of my client.
My partner
was a wheelchair-user, I used to sit in his wheelchair around the house but I
never did go out in it. I was too worried about getting stuck like we so often
did when I was out with my partner and then having to get up and push it home,
thus giving a false impression. But the mother of one of my clients did ride several
electric wheelchairs the 10 kilometres to town and back. She also used them on
the underground in test runs during the months while they were deciding which
one was the best for their daughter’s needs.
So yes,
despite many improvements during the past twenty years, there still is a lot to
be done so that wheelchair users and other people with disability can take an
active part in everyday life without extra barriers put in their paths and
without hurdles to overcome.
