Access Is A Right

Barb Hall Says So

The Thunder Bay Chronicle chronicles more of Barb's thunder by the Bay. You gotta stop giving this lady a stage, folks. Of course in this instance she was playing to the crowd as a guest speaker at the Recreation-Able Inclusive Recreation Forum in Thunder Bay.

Herself had this to say, while tooting her own horn:

“Many restaurants in Ontario have been made accessible because people have filed complaints and they have complied voluntarily or have been ordered by tribunals to do that,” said Barbara Hall.

Hall said the Human Rights Code should not be confused with the AODA (Accessibility for Ontarians with a Disability Act).

The code deals with individual discrimination while the AODA is about transforming the whole province.

“There may be a whole pile of restaurants in Ontario that no one in a wheelchair has ever gone to,” said Hall.

As a brain injured individual, I am largely unable to go to places where there is a lot of noise. So, about once every year or two I suck it up and go anyway. Then I pay for it for the next few days. I attended one Memorial Cup game to see Sid the Kid in London a few years ago, and will attend a Raptors exhibition game next week, because my dear wife bought us tickets. So, if I were to complain to Barb that I am unable to do things and go to places that I formerly enjoyed because of my disability, like sporting events, maybe she could make them accessible for me.

For example, take a basketball game. That would require that fans show their appreciation or derision quietly, and that refs use hand signals instead of whistles. So, if she could muzzle the fans, and quiet the refs, that would help. Then if she could make the players wear non squeaky shoes, and wave their arms quietly when they want a pass, that would be good too. Cut out the music and the fireworks. Dance Pack has to go at Raptors games. This should be made into HRC policy for all basketball games in all venues, down to grade school, in case there is somebody like me at some grade school in Kenora, or Horne Payne.

Pretty much the same for hockey. The wave has to go, unless it can be done quietly, as it makes me seasick, when accompanied by noise. And slap shots would have to be outlawed because they are too noisy. Ditto for wooden boards. Maybe they could be made of Styrofoam or marshmallows, and the loud plink when a puck hits the pipes of the net is bothersome too. Fix that also. Pucks should probably be made of sponge rubber to deaden the sound. This needs to go all the way down to Tim Horton league hockey. Get 'em started young so that my rights and the rights of the other 4 or 5 folks like me in Ontario are preserved. I do have rights, you know.

As for football, You can probably use most of the above, tuned to football. And other sports should not be immune, including badminton. Ever heard how loud the bird being thwacked by a racket is?

While you are at it, Barb, I used to be a musician, and had extensive training and experience in keyboards and guitar, but am no longer able to play, due to the frequency of the sound and how it hurts my head as it arrives there. So, the age old tuning of A 440 hz might have to change. But, since you know all and see all, you can figure it out. Since I have always enjoyed music and was good at it prior to my disability, I HAVE A RIGHT to enjoy music again, even if nobody else on the planet will be able to after you fix it for me.

On second thought, I am okay with things the way they are. I enjoy my life, even though it is different than it was before. I don't do some things I used to enjoy.

I can't go to many restaurants because they are too noisy for me, as well. So what!!

Does anybody out there think that much of this nonsense is way OUT THERE?