BTW, Jess, I ordered a Rumble coffee thingy after you mentioned it on Facebook on Wednesday and it was on my porch when I got home yesterday! Now I have to buy some coffee to put it to use.

Congrats on getting able to sub, Scrappy!

I'm sorry about the pain, sj. I hope when the doctor's office calls, they have some suggestions for remedying it.

So today had some sucky bits for me. I was at the second day of a conference for communicators in non-profit orgs. It's a local conference, so I just drove a mile or so further than usual, no fabulous out of town travel. Anyway, when I got to the venue yesterday morning, there was a sign pointing up a long flight of stairs to the registration desk, and there were no signs/directions showing people with mobility impairments where they should go. The person who turned out to be one of the event organizers was there and I asked if they were going to put something out for that, because the elevator was not in view. I was told that that was the venue's job, and to ask at the service desk. Said service desk had no one at it then, and only had someone at it once out of the 4-5 times I passed it that day. The elevator was around a corner down a dark hallway.

So, fast forward to the end of the day. The organizers told the crowd that there was a big board in the main hall, and they encouraged us to share feedback about the conference so far. So I wrote, "Please consider better signs directing people with mobility impairments to registration. It's not really something you can count on the venue to address."

This morning the person I'd talked to yesterday came up to me and spent well over five minutes ripping me a new one about "bringing negative energy into their space". They were trying to do nice things and how dare I ruin it with my trolling. (Yes, trolling.) They were bringing dietary sensitive snacks in today at 3, and that was more than enough for anyone to expect. And also, I shouldn't be complaining about stuff I clearly don't need, and if someone who really needs an elevator has a problem, they can let her know.

So that's how I got my ass chewed for advocating for mobility-impaired people's access at a social justice communicators' conference.

So that's how I got my ass chewed for advocating for mobility-impaired people's access at a social justice communicators' conference.

Sure would be unfortunate if that person's name ended up all over social media.

Sure would be unfortunate if that person's name ended up all over social media.

Sure would. Mm, hm.

They were bringing dietary sensitive snacks in today at 3, and that was more than enough for anyone to expect

You can't really expect them to address how to access existing features of a building, can you? They're not superheroes!

Sure would be unfortunate if that person's name ended up all over social media.

Well, apparently I'm already a troll, so that should be practically guaranteed. If the organizer had really considered me the troll she called me, she should have expected a hash-tag heavy response to this morning's chastisement. I suspect that she didn't really think I was a troll, she probably thought I was right. But like many nice white liberals (of whom I am one, and I'm aware of some of my group's faults), she couldn't take having someone publically call her org out on an area that needed improvement.

I don't think a massive social media shaming's going to help. She'll just flounce off twitter and blame my trolling. I slacked my team about it this morning, and, given their loud, dismayed reaction, I expect word will spread through my organization. The university's pretty siloed, but my group's communication's team will be communicating with most of the others. And by this time next year, the biggest employer in town will know her name, and not favorably.

Grr, Calli. That is so horrible. I'm sorry you had to deal with that bullshit for doing the right thing.

You can't really expect them to address how to access existing features of a building, can you? They're not superheroes!

I know, right? The time she spent bitching to me couldn't possibly have been spent writing "Elevator" with an arrow on a piece of poster board and putting it in the lobby for the second-day attendees. That would just be silly.

ETA:

I'm sorry you had to deal with that bullshit for doing the right thing.

Thanks. It's ok though. People get worse for doing far less, and I don't think I speak up often enough. I should change that. The moral high-ground's a lovely place. I think I'll build a summer cottage here.

And by this time next year, the biggest employer in town will know her name, and not favorably.

Okay, slower revenge, but probably more satisfying.

Good lord, Calli. It shouldn't have to be on the people who desperately need something to be the only ones to notice or ask. I was at a conference a few weeks ago and was reminded of someone discussing how people who say "oh I don't really need a microphone" are not being cool to anyone who has any degree of hearing loss. And repeatedly at the conference that happened or there weren't enough mics...