Equality Over Special Treatment: Why I Feed the Parking Meter in Downtown Bellingham

I park in Downtown Bellingham quite a bit. The accessible parking is terrible; accessible spots are far and few, and when an accessible spot does exist, it is not up to code. This has been justified by making all parking  -- accessible or not -- free to any person who has an accessible parking placard or license plates. However, this solution does not solve the problem of making parking more accessible; it actually perpetuates the problem.

The city no longer views accessible parking as an issue that needs updating; if people who need accessible parking are given the privilege of parking anywhere for free, then there is a belief that there is no longer a need to provide adequate accessible parking. This belief reflects the logic that if I give one group of people X, who do not have access to Y, and Y is accessible to all other people, but all other people are not privileged to X, and X is considered just as good of option as Y, then X is considered an adequate alternative to Y for the group of people who cannot access Y. However, we do not live in the 60's; the Jim Crow laws have been repealed, and the belief of "Separate but Equal" should have been put behind us. Never the less, this belief still holds strong as acceptable when regarding the disability community.

Instead of having the ability to park in adequate accessible parking and paying to park -- just like all other people utilizing downtown parking -- people with disabilities have been granted the ability to just park for free. I do not feel privileged; I feel patronized. I interpret my so called privilege of parking for free an attempt to keep me quiet - that I should not point out the inadequate parking downtown. And, in attempts to make me feel special, I instead feel like a second class citizen. I rather pay -- just like everyone else -- and have adequate accessible parking. I have paid, and will continue to pay, every time I park downtown (when there is a meter). I am a person, utilizing a spot, the law says to pay, so I am going to pay. I should not be exempt just because it is considered a solution to the problem.

Many people who are not disabled see this as a problem as well, but in that they should not have to pay either. This perpetuates resentment towards the disabled. Other people do not typically see both sides, so they do not understand that the accessible parking is not adequate, and the free parking for those with disabilities is not special treatment, but a copout. None the less, I do agree that if disabled people do not have to pay for parking, neither should anyone else.

The solution is simple; parking should be adequately accessible. This would be a win-win for all citizens and the city. Everyone could park downtown (and therefore pay), and the city would pull in a greater amount of revenue. For a town that claims to be so progressive, they certainly do a poor job of practicing true equality.