TUBBS: One for all and all for hill
A while back I posted a letter to the Coeur d'Alene Press on My Turn.
It was written in response to a letter written by Barbra Fillmore, Linda Wright and Barbara Zimmer.
The letter was about Tubbs Hill.
Since then I have met with Linda Wright, one of the original writers.
We met as just two people, each with his or her passions and ideals.
Linda and the Tubbs Hill people felt as though they were being invaded and pushed into having major changes without their input. The idea of an accessible trail was lumped in with everything else, and so was questioned as part of the total project.
I found Linda to be very genuine and sincere, wanting to make sure that she was not looked at as someone against people with disabilities. Because of our discussions, we have decided to work together and create a partnership rather than continue as adversaries. I would ask everyone in our community to do the same.
Right now we have a disaster in our own backyard. We have families with children, single parents, veterans and many others that are homeless, and do not know where or when their next meal will come. We have elderly and disabled people that may lose their independence and may be unable to stay in their homes only to be shipped off to an institution, which costs much more and goes against most of our citizens' desires. If enough people went from home support to the institutions the state would go bankrupt overnight.
Wouldn't it be a GREAT thing to have our community rally around these issues like they have around the McEuen Field and Tubbs Hill? Imagine a whole room full of people geared up to fight homelessness, hunger and increase independence. I feel it is time to quit throwing verbal stones at each other and find a way to work together.
I hope that Linda and I working together can serve as a positive model to show how people with passion can work together for a common good even when it seems that both parties are on different sides of the fence. I, and Disability Action Center, will always advocate for environments that are built to be accessible and usable by people with any kind of disability. We must be careful that our advocacy is not interpreted to take any particular stance on unrelated issues such as new development, etc. In that way we can ensure that well-meaning people such as Linda can feel the freedom to question some aspects of a project without appearing to challenge equal access for people with a disability. I look forward to working with Linda and others to support their rights and to support our efforts to include accessibility in any projects that are undertaken.
We no longer wish to be seen as adversaries.
WE NEED TO EMPHASIZE "KIND" IN THE WORD HUMANKIND.
VIRGIL EDWARDS
Disability Action Center
Coeur d'Alene