With limited access, largely due to non-inclusive design, the specially-abled are often forced to stay away from public recreational areas like pools, beaches and parks. Forced to watch others having fun, specially-abled kids often refuse to visit such spaces.
In a video shared on social media, a mother in the US showed how inclusive design made it easy for her daughter to enjoy a dip in the pool.
A mother, whose daughter was diagnosed with hydrocephalus and spastic cerebral palsy, recently raised awareness about the need for inclusive design. A video shared on the Instagram account Discover With Dallas showed Katrina Placzek’s eight-year-old child, Dallas, enjoying a wheelchair-accessible swimming pool.
The girl is seen seated in a wheelchair and venturing into the pool as her mother pushes her from behind. The expression on her face reveals her joy at being able to enjoy such a simple pleasure.
“First time seeing a wheelchair accessible swimming pool! A waterproof wheelchair is provided to roll into the pool,” read the text insert in the video.
The poll was located at Tiff’s Place near Orlando, Florida. “We couldn’t believe our eyes when we saw this private wheelchair accessible pool! Never have we seen a wheelchair meant for pools or a ramp entry meant for wheelchairs to access the pool!” reads the caption of the post.
The clip has amassed more than 37 million views on Instagram and users have been showering love on the post. A user wrote, “Wow!!! Amazing. Wish there were more places like this!!!” Another user commented, “I needed this all my life.”
Placzek has been using social media to bring attention to the need for inclusion and has earlier posted a video showing Dallas enjoying a specially-abled friendly swing. Dallas was born prematurely at 28 weeks and has quadriplegic spastic cerebral palsy. As it affects her arms and legs, walking is difficult for her, according to ABC.
“I never thought of it, like how important this is, and to see how inclusion makes someone feel in front of your eyes. It was like, ‘I think I need to show the world what this means for kids like her,’” Placzek recounted. “You don’t really think about it until you’re in a wheelchair because we don’t live in that world and when you have a kid that can’t go to a lot of places, you just stop going,” Placzek was quoted as saying by Good Morning America.
