Physical Barriers Do Exclude
By Dr. Daryl Greene

When I arrived at my first church, I was provided with a list of the shut-ins I was expected to call on regularly. Since many of the folks on this list did actually appear at church on high days such as Christmas, Easter, and Mother's Day, and at the annual Chili Supper & Talent Show, I was convinced that the primary reason they did not attend church regularly was a lack of motivation.

One day someone asked me to put Vivian on my shut-in list. As I drove up the long drive to her old farm house and stepped out of the car her husband opened the front door and said in a low voice, "Thank you for coming. I'm afraid the Mrs. ain’t too good. She's been in and out of the hospital and spends most of the time in bed."

When I stepped into the livingroom I found Vivian fully dressed in her Sunday best and sitting up in an antique wooden rocking chair. When she removed her lap robe, I could see that her legs had atrophied to the point where both her knees were bent out. Her left foot was twisted in while her right foot was twisted out. To my astonishment she stood up with the help of a three pronged cane, slowly walked across the floor, and laid her arms around me. I felt her body shake as she looked up at me with tears streaming down her face, "I'm sorry I haven't been to church, pastor, but I just can't make it up the steps anymore!"

That day I learned that physical barriers can and do exclude persons with disabilities. No matter how motivated Vivian might have been, there was no way she could have gotten up the 14 steps to the front door of the church. Since that time I have learned that steps are not the only physical barriers which exclude disabled persons from participating in the life of the church and the community. Recently, I took an informal survey of complaints about other kinds of barriers:

• I can't drive and don't have a ride
• I don't like the chair lift or elevator because I don't feel secure
• I can't get to an accessible bathroom fast enough
• I can't get in if there is no curb cut
• There's no place for my wheelchair
• I can't hear
• I can't read the sign, menu or program
• I can't hold my drink steady at a reception

As we think about Independence Day and what it means to be Americans today, I would like to remind you that removing physical barriers that exclude disabled citizens from churches, businesses, government buildings and public property is not just a matter of being nice and neighborly. Under the Americans With Disabilities Act, this is a matter of civil rights.

Dr. Greene is an ordained minister of the United Church of Christ and a resident of Richmond, IN. He is also the author of Benjamin's Dog Joseph, Feeling Better: The Wisdom of the Doc, You Can Feel Better: How to cope with chronic pain and physical disabilities, and co-author of Walking Free: the Nellie Zimmerman Story.

For further information about his books, please visit www.densmorereid.com

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