Dear John,
Travel delays, long security lines, cancelled flights – most travelers are used to thinking about these things before summer trips. But for disabled people like me, we have a whole different set of concerns when it comes to airline travel, because we’re navigating a system that was never built for us.
From planes that don’t work for mobility aids (like wheelchairs and scooters), to announcements that are inaccessible to deaf and hard-of-hearing people, to hostile interactions with airport and airline staff – our current air travel system is inaccessible for millions of disabled people.
Today, on National Accessible Airline Travel Day, tell the Senate to pass the Air Carrier Access Amendments Act of 2023 to make flights more accessible for disabled people!
Take Action
Every day, people with a wide variety of disabilities have to navigate air travel’s lack of accessibility.
Did you know wheelchairs can’t fit on most airplanes or airplane bathrooms? And 29 wheelchairs are damaged, delayed, lost, or stolen by airlines every day!
This means disabled people have to check their personal wheelchairs and worry about if they'll ever see it again. That loss of independence can’t be overstated – for so many people, it’s a loss of essentially an extension of their bodies.
Another huge issue is audio airplane announcements are often inaccessible for people who are deaf and hard of hearing. And many disabled people have to interact with TSA agents who don’t know how to support them, leaving them subject to intrusive patdowns or other hostile interactions.
Take action and ask your Senator to pass the Air Carrier Access Amendments Act now!
Take Action
We need Congress to establish airline regulations that treat disabled people with dignity and respect, allowing us to travel safely and accessibly. The Air Carrier Access Amendments Act can help make that possible, by ensuring wheelchair-friendly seating and bathrooms, accessible announcements, and better treatment for disabled people and our mobility aids.
With care,
Tory Cross, Associate Director of Federal Policy & Government Relations
Caring Across Generations
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