The term “disability rights” is meant to ensure that individuals with disabilities are treated fairly and have equal rights to other citizens. Movie theaters have made incredible progress in the area of accessibility. There was a time when I went with my daughter, Marie, to the movies. We would sit on the end of the back row under the bulb that would light the way for the emergency aisle.

During the movie I would interpret the dialogue into American Sign Language. She would enjoy the movie, but me, not so much. I was so busy interpreting that I could not enjoy the movie myself. PLUS, I didn’t have a free hand to eat my favorite, hot buttered popcorn! This was during the time when people in wheelchairs would have been relegated to the front of the auditorium. They also would have been unable to independently order from the snack bar, thus doing without THEIR hot buttered popcorn! Now there are additional wheelchair slots available mid-way in the auditorium and lowered counters at the concession stand. Theaters also have closed captioning glasses for the deaf, open captioning where everyone in the theater can see the words, (which can be quite stimulating during an R rated movie,) an FM system for people who wear hearing aids, and audio descriptions for people who are blind, (again, which can be extremely enjoyable during an R rated movie…” The tall, muscular man with ripped abs slowly begins to take his t-shirt off, raising it sensually above his head, peering soulfully into the eyes of his female companion”.) Now, people with disabilities can go to the movies and enjoy the experience just as much as people without disabilities. Going to the movies with Marie has become a much more pleasant experience.

Marie has become very tech savvy and regularly uses her iPhone to “talk” to others. One such incident happened the other day, an incident that demonstrated that she was going to insist on her rights no matter what! We had waited in a long line of 10 cars at Dunkin Donuts. She texted me her order, which I read, word for word, into the microphone. It was repeated back to me incorrectly, and I had to give the same order several times. Marie always gets a bagel with creamed cheese and a frozen French Vanilla coffee with whipped cream. When we got to the window, they gave her a bagel without cream cheese, which was promptly handed back to be corrected.

Then they gave her the frozen coffee, but it was lacking the luscious whipped cream. Marie was visible angry, but with the long line behind us, and the fact that they had already had to take the bagel back to put the cream cheese on it, I pulled forward and told her she had to “get over it,” I wasn’t going to hold the line up any longer.

Not one to “get over” anything, she reminded me that it was her basic right to get what she ordered, and she wanted whipped cream on her frozen coffee! I parked the car, and in she went to demand a correction. She went in there and, via text on her cell phone, asked to speak to the manager. She told him that her order did not come out correct and she had a right to get her whipped cream. Written back on her phone, in text, was the response of the manager. He apologized and said he was upset with his staff because they were always making mistakes, but they were new and were just learning. Emily texted back that she understood. Bolder than I, she came walking back out to the car brandishing her newly whipped cream adorned frozen coffee, once again proving that disability rights can be equal to the same rights as anyone else.