Okay; before I start I’d like to clearly define my audience here and today I am focusing on those who may want to learn a bit more about the meaning of Human Rights and this is strictly in my humble and respectful opinion.
I believe that it all comes down to educating and helping to build awareness. For fair is fair; we should not expect all of society to know how to react, what to say, and how and when to communicate with those who have a disability, seniors, and those who are vulnerable.
So for what it is worth, here are a few points from me as one who is vision impaired.
- We need to be treated with respect and courtesy.
- Our needs need to be verbalized and understood.
- We need to be treated as Human Beings and not as luggage or packages.
- We need to be communicated with directly and not through anyone else.
- We need to understand that one size does not fit all. That is that one cannot treat all persons with a disability in the same way.
- A particular solution may fill the needs of one specific group of persons with a disability but not another.
- An example of this are the check in kiosks at airports.
- One should realize that most blind and vision impaired persons do not need wheelchairs at airports. Just remember; most blind and vision impaired persons can walk.
- We need to recognize that the bread and butter consumer of the very near future is going to be persons with disabilities and seniors.
- No need to yell at a person who is either blind or vision impaired when talking with them. They can hear but they cannot see.
- When communicating with a person with a disability, it is best to ask them how you can be of assistance. You should never shove or push them.
Just my two cents worth for today.