Strasbourg September 2009

There are many reasons to go to Strasbourg but every 2 years since 2003 there is the Freedom Drive that disabled people from all over Europe congregate for a rally to the EU Parliament in Strasbourg.

I should have blogged about it much sooner but it took me some time to catch up with myself and my schedules, work etc. Also to absorb what the impact of whole rally .

Here is ENIL (European Network on Independent Living) program and information about it. I always found the camaraderie enriching and inspiring and this year was no different.

Shaking hands with Jerzy Buzek

But there is much written about the Freedom Drive already elsewhere. I won’t go on abut it here.

I enjoyed being a guide and doing some research on Strasbourg as a destination. I wanted to see if there is public transport to go do some wine tasting in the surrounding villages – it is that time of the year – vendange. When I lived in Strasbourg, we’ve always gone in the car.Well, I didn’t have to drive but I never really did the spitting out business….

grapes on the vine

This is the information I found about access for SNCF you can call this number – 0 890 640 650 – 48 hrs in advance with details of what sort of access needs and they would sort it out. Now this number cannot be accessed except from a French line but they will, apparently, get you to the nearest accessible station and then from there accommodate you to get to your destination with accessible transport (which might be a taxi).

Accessible Taxi in Strasbourg (I spoke to the driver but have not tried his services , they do not have a website yet) Access Cible (Transport de Personnes à mobilité réduite) -+33 388771579 54, rue de Prés, 67380 LINGOLSHEIM

Some restaurants I tried out with disabled friends who were there and can recommend the food as well as the access -

Hippopotamus 40/42 rue du Vieux Marché aux Vins
67000 Strasbourg (right next to Homme de Fer)

Tél : +33 3.88.23.84.90

Good for bigger groups. Accessible WC. Good for steak dinners

Restaurant Au Pont Saint-Martin
15, Rue Moulins
67000 Strasbourg, France
Tél : +33 3 88 32 45 13‎

Needs booking for bigger groups. No accessible WC. Petite France is generally cobbley but picturesque.

L’Ancienne Douane

6 rue de la Douane, Strasbourg

Tél : +33 3 88 15 78 78

Best book for larger parties, free parking at Austerlitz,  wheelchair accessible WC. Brasserie food

Art Cafe, Museum of Modern and Contemporary Art

1, place Hans Jean Arp

Tram stop Musee d’Art Moderne

Tél : +33 3 88 22 18 88

Wonderful view especially when the terrace is open. Great brunches on Sundays.

Art Cafe Terrace

Its time to think about Christmas Market in Strasbourg again.Are hotels all booked yet? I am always amazed by the fact how fast the hotels get booked up especially during parliamentary sessions.

I think the best accessible hotel is the
Hôtel Ibis Centre Gare
10 place de la Gare
67000 Strasbourg
Tél. + 33  3 88 23 98 98

This is if you need a roll in shower. It also has a spacious room. It is also in close proximity of the station and great cous cous and kebab restaurants. I stayed at the Ibis Aux Pont Couvert this time round,

Hôtel Ibis Centre ‘Aux Ponts Couverts’
7, rue de Molsheim
67000 Strasbourg

Tél. +33 (0)3 90 22 48 70

Although there is a shower, the transfer is not as easy and the room size is not so generous.

So much more to write but enough for this time.

CEDAW Conference and Women Resource Centre

I went in my capacity as steering group member of the Women Policy Forum at W.A.I.T.S (Women Acting In Todays Society) to the Women’s Resource Centre and Equality and Human Rights Commission launch of reportNot Just Bread but Roses Too: Funding to the Women’s Voluntary and Community Sector in England. at Westminster. There were four of us from the group but Anita Shervington and I represented WAITS.

Well, I was quite late because I couldn’t figure out how to get into the building and the man at the end of the buzzer gave me wrong instructions but in the end I got on the the platform lift which was hidden under the steps at One Great George Street. It was obviously designed so that it was in keeping with the front of the building architecture but not designate wheelchair users to some back entrance. I missed quite a bit of the speeches.

retreating stairs which transforms into platform lift

platform lift

After that launch on my way to my hotel I bumped into some of the delegates from Northern Ireland on the way to dinner in Chinatown, they wanted me to join them and I took them to the Wong Kei as the nearest accessible restaurant (we were on Wardour Street). I feel a bit guilty because they could have gone to a swankier restaurant which might not have been accessible but they didn’t seem to mind too much. I hope they didn’t.

late dinner at the Wong Kei

The next day, we were all well occupied with workshops and presentations at the Seizing the opportunities of CEDAW: Developing a women’s sector strategy for 2011. I must confess when I first started I wasn’t too sure what CEDAW (Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women) meant but later I saw the cross overs and how similar it was to the Convention on Rights of Disabled Persons (CRDP). I can now see its relevance as a tool for W.A.I.T.S work. I am not convinced that it will affect the day to day running of the work in progress. To wield it as an instrument/weapon, one has to exhaust the legal structure of the originating country. But it can be used to strengthen a case and failure to honour signed protocols can be used to embarrass the government – this is what I understood unless I got it all wrong. I need to study and digest its implications fuller to understand it better. (Links to WRC blog and photos)

I went to this workshop -

Making the European connections
National Alliance of Women’s Organisations
The European Union has led on many international milestones for women (e.g. women in politics), and has a powerful voice on the international stage. NAWO is the coordinating body for the European Women’s Lobby in England. Come to this workshop to find out about current efforts to mainstream gender equality in
Europe, how to monitor the UK government on its implementation of EU directives on women’s equality, and how to lobby MEPs on women’s rights issues.

We didn’t have enough time to give the discussion justice. I think the passion, the energy of the people involved energised and gave me strength. Vivienne Hayes, the Chief Executive, is inspiring in her untiring work for women and the centre and yet she is very down to earth and always have time for people. I’ve met many people who get puffed up by their own importance, or perception of their importance, and are always too busy to say hello but not Vivienne.

To a certain extent, if I digress a bit, I saw where this feeds back to Connect Culture and what I am trying to do with it. Women is very much part of the constituency that I want to work with. I think there are certain concerns that women travelers have which differs from a man – and that includes the need to feel safe and secure from harassment and violence. There are certain things men sometimes take for granted that women have to consider – just on the very basic need for toilets, for example. And this is more so for the disabled woman than the man.

Bletchley Park

Bletchley Park is an historic site of secret British codebreaking activities during WWII and birthplace of the modern computer. It is not far from London and it came to my attention because of Dr Sue Black’s campaign and it occurred to me that it could be one  of the attractions that visitors might want as a tour /attraction outside London. Sue says:

Thousands of people worked at Bletchley Park during World War Two to decode messages that the German forces transmitted, most notably by Hitler to the German high command. The cracking of the codes used, the use of the intelligence gained and the subsequent related actions of the Allies is said to have shortened World War Two by two years possibly saving 22 million lives. The critical importance of Bletchley Park in world history cannot be denied.

Bletchley Park is also the birthplace of the computer. The world’s first programmable, digital, electronic computer: Colossus was invented and built at Bletchley Park during World War Two to speed the reading of encrypted German messages.

Bletchley Park is unique. It combines a key role in modern history along with being the birthplace of the computer

While we are all so dependent on the internet and computers these days, visitors might be interested in visiting this heritage site, especially history boffs.  I am not a history boff but I will be paying it a visit soon. According to its website, it has full disabled access. In the meantime, the museum needs funding for its maintenace too.

undercover wheelchair investigation on public transport in London

This morning on BBC Breakfast, I heard that a  group of young disabled campaigners from London will be embarking on an undercover investigation into the state of the public transport system throughout the capital.

The mystery commuter study is the first campaign being organised by the Trailblazers – the Muscular Dystrophy Campaign’s nationwide network of 16 to 30-year-olds fighting for the rights of young disabled people.

The decision to probe public transport was taken following a number of negative incidents experienced by the Trailblazers when using public transport. These have included young wheelchair users getting stuck on buses, broken ramps and buzzers as well as being bullied out of seating by fellow passengers.

Over the coming months the 120 young campaigners from across the UK will be documenting their journeys and completing surveys every time they make a trip on public transport. The Trailblazers will be using their blogs to record their experiences on this website. The results of the local undercover investigation will be revealed in a national report published in the spring.

The mystery commuter investigation will be conducted across the whole of London.

Read more at the Trailblazers website.  I would be very interested in the report.

US court settlement to improve access to online hotel bookings

Press release alert from Scott Rains of Rolling Rains Report

SETTLEMENT REACHED TO IMPROVE ACCESS TO HOTELS.COM AND EXPEDIA RESERVATION SERVICES FOR DISABLED TRAVELERS

OAKLAND, Calif. – Under a settlement announced today, Hotels.com and Expedia.com, two of the world’s leading online travel companies, have agreed to add features to their online travel reservation systems so that millions of travelers with disabilities can use their online services to search for and reserve hotel rooms that have the accommodations they need.

Plaintiffs in the California lawsuit Smith v. Hotels.com L.P. were represented by the public interest law firms of Disability Rights Advocates (DRA) and Public Justice, and a leading class action law firm in Mill Valley, Calif., Chavez & Gertler LLP.

As part of the settlement, Hotels.com and Expedia.com will gather information about hotels’ accessibility features, and will then incorporate that information into their websites so that travelers can both search for hotels with rooms that offer the particular accommodations they need, and make special requests online to book those accessible rooms. Each special request will be given individual attention by a trained customer service representative, who will work with the customer to accommodate his or her needs. These new features will be rolled out later this year.

“For years, travelers with disabilities have been unable to take advantage of the convenience and low cost options of booking hotel rooms online,” said plaintiff Bonnie Lewkowicz. “Now, for the first time, I will be able to reserve a hotel room online that meets my needs, just like anyone else.”

Lewkowicz and co-plaintiff Judith Smith are members of AXIS Dance Company, a not-for-profit company of professional dancers with and without disabilities based in Oakland, Calif. Ms. Smith and Ms. Lewkowicz both rely on wheelchairs for mobility.

“By adding website features to meet the needs of disabled consumers, Hotels.com and Expedia are showing that they are true leaders in the hospitality industry” added Victoria Ni , a staff attorney at Public Justice, a public interest law firm specializing in cutting-edge litigation nationwide. “We hope and believe that other online travel agencies will follow their lead.”

In 2006, American online consumer travel sales generated $79 billion. For American travelers, the Internet is an indispensable resource for planning trips and booking lodgings and transportation.

Adults with disabilities spend over $10 billion annually on travel, and almost half of them consult the Internet to support their travel needs.

Wheelchair users need wide doorways and grab bars and accessible bathrooms. People with visual or hearing impairments also need accessible features, such as Braille signage or a text telephone.

“This settlement ushers in a new era in the online travel industry. A wheelchair user who reserves a hotel room online will no longer have to worry that she or he literally might not be able to enter the room after they arrive,” said Kevin Knestrick, an attorney with DRA, a non-profit law center based in Berkeley, Calif., that specializes in high-impact lawsuits on behalf of people with disabilities.

No damages were sought in the case, which was filed in the California Superior Court for Alameda County.

For more information about the lawsuit and settlement, please go to Public Justice’s website, at www.publicjustice.net, or to DRA’s website, at www.dralegal.org.

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Public Justice is America’s public interest law firm, supported by – and calling on — a nationwide network of more than 3,000 of the nation’s top lawyers to pursue precedent-setting and socially significant litigation. It has a wide-ranging litigation docket in the areas of consumer rights, worker safety, civil rights and liberties, toxic torts, environmental protection, and access to the courts. Public Justice is the principal project of the Public Justice Foundation, a not-for-profit membership organization headquartered in Washington, DC, with a West Coast office in Oakland, California. The Public Justice web site address is www.publicjustice.net.
Disability Rights Advocates is a non-profit law firm based in Berkeley, California, whose mission is to protect and advance the civil rights of people with disabilities through high-impact litigation, advocacy and education. Disability Rights Advocates is a national leader in protecting the rights of people with all types of disabilities, including mobility, sensory, mental health and learning disabilities.

Now it makes me wonder if it will translate over this side of the pond – what about hotels.co.uk and expedia.co.uk – will they have to follow suit? What if I book hotels in London using hotel.com? We will have to test them later.

Event in London – Million Women Rise

I had the opportunity to hear Sabrina Qureshi speak in Birmingham when I went to a Women’s networking event at the Library organised by Shahida Choudhry (Facebook Women’s Networking Hub). Sabrina went up and started by saying how she was not used to public speaking but then gave an impassionate speech about what compels her to organise the Million Women Rise event in London (next event is on Saturday 7th March 2009)
for which she won the Emma Humphreys memorial prize.  I was at the periphery last year at the event but I had not heard her speak before.

Sabrina Qureshi

What has this got to do with Connect Culture and inclusive travel? It shows the kind of energy and diversity in the UK which congregates in London. Million Women Rise is against domestic violence against women – this includes disabled women. There is a report on the issue of the inadequate support given to disabled women domestic violence survivor. There are inadequate refuge provision anyhow and of those, there is probably very few which have accessible accommodation for disabled women.

I bumped into Sabrina at Birmingham New Street Station and met Viviene Hays Chief Executive of the Womens Resource Centre who was with her and on the train we had a chat about the difficulty of getting funding.  Its not a coincidence that the story seems so familiar – that its the bigger organisations with the capacity to get grant applications which then squeezes out the smaller grass roots organisations.

One of my ohjectives when I set Connect Culture as a social entrepreneurship is that it isn’t just for holidays. I would also offer services to people who go to these capital cities for business and for professional reasons. I don’t think I can provide refuge assistance though – that is beyond my scope.  Not unless what they require are  accessible hotel rooms.