Ashley Centers, 27, says the first thing people notice about her is her bright purple hair, her weight or her wheelchair.
But there”s much more to her than that. A self-described feminist, writer and lover of sunshine and coffee, she is a student at the University of Idaho majoring in English and minoring in journalism, and she contributes her writing to “Home & Harvest.”
And just like many members of the community, Centers suffers a disability that sometimes poses a struggle when it comes to getting around town.
Centers and three other panelists gathered at Gritman Medical Center Tuesday to discuss how the city of Moscow and the university can create easier accessibility for people with disabilities.
Kira Hunter | Argonaut
Students and volunteers in assorted wheelchairs, walkers, and crutches gather outside of the Moscow Gritman Medical Center Tuesday the 15th after participating in a mobility exercise to raise awareness of the difficulties faced by the disabled community.
Sponsored by the City of Moscow Human Rights Commission, the forum “Breaking Barriers Together: Access and Inclusion” featured Centers, a social advocate, along with panelists Justin Minden, director of therapy solutions at Gritman, Krista Kramer, an independent living planning coordinator at the Disability Action Center and Ron Landeck, co-founder of Latah Trail Foundation.
Dozens of people showed up to listen to the speakers share their experiences, filling every seat in the room and more.
Many attendees had just come from a “Rolling Walkshop,” where participants used walkers, canes, wheelchairs and strollers to get from the Bruce Pitman Center to Gritman.
The event was put on to give participants a firsthand experience of what it”s like to navigate Moscow with a physical disability.
Rula Awwad-Rafferty, Human Rights commissioner and co-coordinator of the event, asked those involved to shout out words to describe the experience they had.
“Danger,” one person shouted.
“Challenge,” said another.
“Two words,” one man said, “Not fun.”
Awwad-Rafferty said the lack of empathy people with disabilities sometimes experience from others is a cause of concern.
Formal Vandal Sarah Sant, 19, said some parts of the walk simply did not accommodate her.
“It was supposed to be accessible, specifically to people in wheelchairs, and it wasn”t,” Sant said. The audience viewed a slideshow of unmarked sidewalks, uneven bricks and inconsistent walkways that can currently be found all around Moscow – all of which are potentially dangerous to people using walkers or wheelchairs.
Landeck, of the Latah Trail Foundation, discussed how the foundation has been working to provide easier access to trails around Moscow, but admitted it”s not always easy.
He said states and cities have taken it upon themselves to decide what defines an “easy access trail,” leading to inconsistencies in trail quality.
Landeck said the grade of the Latah Trail has been altered in recent years to create easier access, but in order to provide full access, the trail needs to be paved. He said this suggestion has caused controversy among those who wish to preserve the natural state of the trail, despite the fact that the foundation does not believe pavement will cause any harm to nature surrounding the trail.
Emily Aizawa, who is a UI student and co-coordinated the event, said she was not expecting such a large turnout for the event.
Members of the Latah County Commissioners received an award for drafting a proclamation to advance the Americans with Disabilities Act, which celebrated its 25th anniversary this year. They also announced they”re currently working to make the Moscow courthouse more accessible, though the courthouse already meets all qualifications required by the ADA.
“This means more than the ADA,” Awwad-Rafferty later said about making accommodations for the disabled. “It means, would I want this for myself?”
As for Centers, she will continue to look ahead and live the life she”s always known.
“I try very hard to keep moving forward, no matter what others think,” Centers said.
The Human Rights Commission hosts a forum on the third Tuesday of every month. Awwad-Rafferty and Aizawa said next month”s topic is to be determined, but will most likely focus on race and ethnicity.
Taylor Nadauld can be reached at [email protected] or on Twitter at @tnadauldarg