Cane and Able: #13 Public Transport

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It's well known that public transport has seats which are designated to the elderly, pregnant and disabled near the access points of the transport so that there is adequate time to get on or off the vehicle and ensure there is always seating available. It is also well known that it's a largely resented 'privilege' that people get just for 'being a bit sick'

But this I did not expect to see.

I have been mocked, stared at and had sarcastic remarks yelled at me since I could walk for being sat in priority seats. I have been told to move, made to stand up and even been threatened to get off the bus by other passengers. Yet to beat up a woman who is with her husband and child because she won't move away from those seats is abhorrent.

It's not simply a case of "here you are defending another disabled person who was attacked" Lupus is an invisible condition largely, like mine is, I do not expect people to read minds to know what a disability it and what it does - I expect the simple curtesy of being able to explain myself if asked and not being treated like filth whether people believe me or not. Same as this woman and any other person who has to use public transport. There are at most four seats set aside for those who NEED it and more often than not the opportunity to utilise what is provided is an act that draws out derision and disgust from others. Most busses don't have provisions yet for wheelchair users - meaning to get to uni some days I would have to forgo using a wheelchair if it was a plausible situation (Which ended up with me requiring prepaid taxis provided by the local authority - something else which drew ire from other students who used taxis because they didn't want to walk or use busses)

It would just be nice to hear a story about true acceptance, not token seats or quips about "we also include the disabled" it should be something open and acceptable not hidden away or ignored in the hopes it will be a rarity.