Abstract

My father was not a quadruple congenital amputee, was not born nor did he live without arms or legs as I have my entire life. He did contribute mightily to my wonderful, well-prepared life. But he doesn’t truly know how difficult it is to open a door with a shiny round doorknob using two artificial clamps for hands or to pull these same heavy doors open. That inaccessible door was not just a physical barrier; it told me, unintentionally, that my passage through the door was not a right but merely a permission not accomplished independently but with the help of another. This is oppression, fully despised by those of us with disabilities who are proud, free, and productive. And it is quite easily solved by universal design.