Sidewalks

I have found myself thinking a lot about sidewalks over my past few days in Texas. It is, of course, because I have been walking for miles and miles everyday. I have depended on sidewalks since arriving in Texas, and it's hard not to notice them.

One of my days in San Antonio, as I began a walk from one end of the city to the other, I decided to take on a sidewalk challenge: I was to navigate my way around as if I were traveling in a wheelchair or similar mobility vehicle. I could not use steps. Curbs without ramps meant I had to search for a driveway. Broken, cracked, uneven sidewalks were potential hazards. I needed real sidewalks.

It was miserable. I was already all in favour of further measures to increase accessibility in all places (and not just for those who travel by wheelchair), and, intellectually, I already understood that ramps placed out of the way on the side or back of a building, rather than in front where stairs might be, were in many ways a sort of "separate but (not) equal" access, but it was very different to experience it myself.

I had to turn around and backtrack way too much. Often, there were no ramps at all. When there were ramps, they were far out of the way and inconvenient. I frequently had to go into the street because a car was blocking the sidewalk (though I would have had to regardless in those cases). Sometimes, I came to a complete dead end. Other times, the sidewalk just became too uneven or overgrown with plants. It was endlessly frustrating and gave me so much more respect for everyone who has to put up with such frustration on a daily basis.

I didn't even have to deal with any sort of discrimination or prejudice from other people (and, believe me, I have heard people say some horrible things about and to "those people in wheelchairs") to understand that we have absolutely not done enough to make our businesses and public spaces and homes and cities accessible.

And it's not just about "those people in wheelchairs." It's about parents pushing strollers and children learning to ride a bike and you not worrying that your parents, grandparents, or friends might trip on the uneven path. It's about ensuring there are safe pathways for everyone and being intentional about inclusion and accessibility.

Check this resource out for just a few good reasons for having (functional) sidewalks, including dramatically reducing car-pedestrian collisions, and all kinds of other related information.

As I walked around Houston today and saw sidewalks, both good and bad, I asked myself what ways I could be part of the solution. I wondered about what my local chapter of The Harry Potter Alliance could do. I thought about community organisations that could take action and ways to encourage political decision makers to prioritise something so simple yet crucial. I tried to come up with other accessibility concerns not limited to sidewalks.

There's not one answer. For me, right now, talking about it is most important, involving others in the discussion and drawing attention to the issue. I have five and a half more weeks to take in more and more, to learn and grow and not try to single-handedly fix all of the world's problems overnight. (Though I'm tempted right now to try to fix all the sidewalks at least.) Maybe I will come up with a brilliant project to start once I arrive home that will help make accessibility a higher priority in Los Angeles.