Haben Girma👩🏿‍🦯 Profile picture
Aug 14 7 tweets 2 min read Twitter logo Read on Twitter
Because I'm blind, an airline is saying I have to sit alone. We booked side-by-side seats. But when they found out I'm blind, they separated us. They're claiming it's their policy 1/7 #RightsOnFlights
that if a person has a service dog over 55 pounds, they need a separate extra seat because they assume the dog won't fit. Weight is just a number. #GuideDogs are trained to tuck themselves under seats and I can use my feet as a barrier, 2/7
keeping my dog confined to the floor space by my feet. (Photo of a German Shepherd dog sweetly looking up at the camera while curled up on the floor by my feet. We’re both within the designated space for a single plane seat.) 3/7
And that extra empty seat, they want me to pay for it! Charging disabled people double for tickets, telling us we can't sit next to family or friends, and, guide dog fat-shaming. My trip is in a few weeks and I don't know exactly what will happen, 4/7
but I know I'm going to do everything I can to make sure other disabled travelers never have to deal with this. I filed a complaint with the U.S. Department of Transportation. @USDOT The airline is @_azoresAirlines from Portugal, but because they fly to the US, they're still 5/7
subject to our anti-discrimination laws. Filing a complaint with the U.S. Department of Transportation is free, fairly straightforward, & it can be done online. Please help share this video so more people know they can file complaints when experiencing airline access issues 6/7
Let's remove barriers all over the world. 7/7

• • •

Missing some Tweet in this thread? You can try to force a refresh
 

Keep Current with Haben Girma👩🏿‍🦯

Haben Girma👩🏿‍🦯 Profile picture

Stay in touch and get notified when new unrolls are available from this author!

Read all threads

This Thread may be Removed Anytime!

PDF

Twitter may remove this content at anytime! Save it as PDF for later use!

Try unrolling a thread yourself!

how to unroll video
  1. Follow @ThreadReaderApp to mention us!

  2. From a Twitter thread mention us with a keyword "unroll"
@threadreaderapp unroll

Practice here first or read more on our help page!

More from @HabenGirma

Jun 27, 2022
It’s #HelenKeller’s birthday & the start of #Deafblind Awareness Week! Deafblind people face higher levels of depression in part because ableist barriers often exclude us from conversations. Today, and every day, practice these steps to help make your stories more accessible. 1/5 My friend Cameron and I are...
1. If you post a photo, add image descriptions, also called alt text. Describe the key details in the image so someone who can’t see it can receive the emotional message through words. If there is text in the image, include that, too. Tap “Alt” on my photo for a sample. 2/5
2. Videos should have captions, on-screen text that captures the video’s audio. Bold, large font that contrasts with the background is easier for people with low vision. 3/5
Read 5 tweets
Jun 30, 2020
My eyes move involuntarily, each one swinging to its own music. They’ve danced this way for as long as I can remember. I can’t see it myself, but the jeering kids let me know. The adults nudging me to wear sunglasses let me know. And trolls certainly let me know. Thread 1/5 I'm a Black woman standing with my hands at my waist, wearin
Our society criminalizes #disability. Countless books & films allege eyes reveal a person’s soul, then deliberately give the evil characters abnormal eyes. Not all of them, of course, but enough to influence the public’s perception of eyes like mine. #Ableism 2/5
The #blind community has many stories of police glancing at our eyes & immediately assuming intoxication, illegal substance use, or criminal intent. Those of us who are blind and Black face the dual forces of #ableism and racism. #BlackDisabledLivesMatter 3/5
Read 5 tweets
Jun 24, 2020
Helen Keller’s birthday is June 27 & it’s #Deafblind Awareness Week. Helen knew she benefited from white privilege. A fierce activist, she protested, wrote articles & donated to orgs working to end racism. I'm confident #HelenKeller would emphatically affirm #BlackLivesMatter
Video Transcript (I’m speaking): June 27 is #HelenKeller's birthday & all week is #Deafblind Awareness Week. Helen Keller was a fierce activist working to end racism. 1/x
Video transcript continued: She was a white woman who recognized white privilege & worked to help end all the racism that exists in our country. There's still a lot of work to do. 2/x
Read 6 tweets

Did Thread Reader help you today?

Support us! We are indie developers!


This site is made by just two indie developers on a laptop doing marketing, support and development! Read more about the story.

Become a Premium Member ($3/month or $30/year) and get exclusive features!

Become Premium

Don't want to be a Premium member but still want to support us?

Make a small donation by buying us coffee ($5) or help with server cost ($10)

Donate via Paypal

Or Donate anonymously using crypto!

Ethereum

0xfe58350B80634f60Fa6Dc149a72b4DFbc17D341E copy

Bitcoin

3ATGMxNzCUFzxpMCHL5sWSt4DVtS8UqXpi copy

Thank you for your support!

Follow Us on Twitter!

:(