When Robert Cohen, who happens to navigate life from the seat of a motorized wheelchair, went to the Savannah Country Day stadium to watch his friend’s sons play football, he was disappointed by what he found. Neither the stands nor the restrooms were wheelchair accessible. Rather than sit with his friends in the stands, he had to watch the game parked on the muddy track.

 

Last Friday night, Country Day held a ribbon-cutting ceremony for a new, paved, all-weather track that surrounds the football field. Not long ago, they dedicated a high-tech, climate-controlled press box perched on top of the stands.

 

Unfortunately, rather than address the inaccessibility of the ramp-less stands and out-of-code restrooms, their “solution” was to pour a small concrete pad for wheelchairs at one end of the field.

 

As a result, differently-abled people are still not welcome to join their family and friends in the stands to watch the game. Instead, they must park on the pad near the end zone, which is a good viewing spot only if the ball happens to be nearby.

 

Heaven forbid that they have to use the bathroom because that would require a lengthy trek around the field to the campus gymnasium and would mean missing at least a quarter of the game.

 

According to the County Day website, a commitment to diversity is part of the school’s mission and core beliefs, yet their construction priorities reflect otherwise. When it comes to valuing inclusion of people of varying physical abilities, actions speak louder than words.

 

To be fair, Country Day is not the only entity in town that disregards the basic needs of differently-abled people.

 

While the food at Driftaway Café in Sandfly is delicious, their wheelchair entry ramp is so steep that it is dangerous. In spite of serious accidents that have occurred, the landlord has yet to bring the ramp up to current code.

 

Even though serving disabled veterans is part of their mission, the American Legion near Forsyth Park does not even have a wheelchair ramp. Neither does Abe’s on Lincoln. Same for the Burger King on MLK.

 

A stroll around downtown with a friend or a relative in a wheelchair will quickly alert you to the shortcomings of our sidewalks and curb cuts. Take a good look at the numerous unpaved Chatham Area Transit bus stops and consider navigating them in a wheelchair.

 

Being disabled is a minority group that anyone can join. The truth is that we are all just a stroke, car wreck or blown ACL away from being in a wheelchair.

 

As the Baby Boomer population ages, their eyes will be opened to the inequities that exist and they will not tolerate being treated as second-class citizens as they await their knee and hip replacement surgeries.

 

Imagine how disheartening all of this must seem to a developmentally disabled person who has spent his or her entire life in a wheelchair. It is as if the world constantly says, “You are not welcome here."

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The Americans with Disabilities Act was passed in 1990, which theoretically prohibited discrimination against people with disabilities. We still have a long way to go.

 

Just as society recognizes it is not permissible to tell someone they can’t drink out of a water fountain or use the bathroom due to their race or religion, we must also realize that we are doing the exact same thing to disabled people when facilities are not wheelchair accessible.

 

Here’s an idea: instead of taking photos of people littering and posting them on billboards and in the paper, let’s take and post pictures of missing curb cuts, wheelchair ramps, and inaccessible restrooms. Let’s shine some sunshine on the businesses and governments who have the opportunity to bring their facilities up to code to accommodate the needs of differently-abled people.

 

For Savannah to be its best, we must welcome and include people of all abilities. Valuing diversity and inclusion is about actions not just words. It is not enough to say it is a priority, we must make it a priority.