by Blake Hunsley
Meeting up with a friend recently, I noticed that she had a large scratch on her face. When I asked her about it, she told me that she had walked into a construction sign attached to a utility pole at face height.
“I could have lost an eye!” She griped. This is a little darkly funny because this particular friend already has two glass eyes. The encounter with the sign, however, was much less funny not only because she was hurt, but because injuries like this are a fairly regular occurrence.
Low branches, improperly placed signs, cars parked blocking sidewalks, the list of potentially hazardous obstructions faced by blind and partially sighted folks goes on and on and on. Spend a few hours walking around our city with someone who can’t see these dangers and you’ll find yourself noticing them everywhere. Things your eyes may have once glazed over are now glaringly obvious dangers. Once you see them, you can do your part and call 311 or have a kind word with the car owner or property manager or whoever else can help clear away the obstruction. It often takes nothing more than pointing out a problem to make the situation safer in short order.
Looking at the world through a lens of accessibility isn’t something that comes naturally to most people, but it does become natural very quickly once you start. Soon you won’t be able to go on a simple leisurely walk without noticing these things and speaking up about them. This might make us a little annoying to some folks who would rather not hear about their poor parking job or misplaced signage, but I’ve never been afraid of being a little annoying (seriously, ask around), especially when it can help prevent injury.
Unfortunately, it often takes an injury to make many of us sighted folks pay more attention to the obstructions our blind and partially sighted friends can’t see. This isn’t because we’re bad people or because we don’t care, we’re simply not accustomed to navigating the world without sight, so our eyes glaze over the obstructions we can see and instinctively avoid.
A great way to start changing your perspective is to undertake a blindfolded guided walk around your neighborhood with a sighted friend. Ideally this friend would have some experience guiding someone with low or no vision, but you can find some best practices here courtesy of the CNIB. Jane’s Walks also occasionally offer guided walks under the supervision of a local blind or low-sighted group leader, which is an ideal way to get expert advice and to learn from first-person experience. However you undertake your guided walk, you’ll be surprised how alien a neighborhood you know like the back of your hand starts to feel once you can’t see it. And when that blindfold comes off, you’ll see dangers and obstructions you likely never noticed before. And once you’ve seen them, you’ll start noticing dangers and barriers everywhere.
When you look at the world through this lens of accessibility, you’ll start noticing a lot more than just obstructions. You’ll find yourself pointing out things like steps without reflective strips and proper rails, washrooms without turn-around room for wheelchair users, videos without closed captioning options, and so much more. Some things you’ll be able to address or fix yourself, some you’ll have to call for help, and unfortunately some problems will persist.
The best thing you can do after you’ve adopted this lens yourself is to encourage others to notice these things as well. Dangers and barriers to accessibility don’t persist because people don’t care, they persist because people don’t notice. Until a friend shows with another scratch or bruise, or doesn’t show up at all because they couldn’t find an accessible route. So the next time you see a low hanging sign or blocked sidewalk, take a moment and speak up. You may end up sparing someone an injury, and you will make our community just that little bit safer and more accessible to everyone.
