Treat Me The Same

I was recently denied access from an antique store while holiday shopping. This was an extremely frustrating instance because not only was the employee being disrespectful, laughing in my face when I explained the federal law, but also demanding my credit card and contact information to be allowed into the store.

I’m so grateful to my mom who wrote an amazing letter perfectly describing why this is unacceptable and illegal.

In my mother’s words:

To whom it may concern:

It is my understanding that on Saturday, November 11, my daughter and her service dog were denied access to your store. In fact, she was only allowed to enter if she provided her personal credit card and contact information. Is this a request made of all of your customers? I want to be sure that you understand that denying a disabled person the same public access as all of your customers is a direct violation of the American with Disabilities Act, which is protected under federal law. It is illegal to discriminate against someone because of their disabilities.

The Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) is a federal civil rights law that prohibits discrimination against people with disabilities in everyday activities. The ADA prohibits discrimination on the basis of disability just as other civil rights laws prohibit discrimination on the basis of race, color, sex, national origin, age, and religion. The ADA guarantees that people with disabilities have the same opportunities as everyone else to enjoy employment opportunities, purchase goods and services, and participate in state and local government programs.

As a small business owner, you should be aware that if you had indeed treated her differently than your other customers, she would be within her rights to file a complaint with the U.S. Department of Civil Rights, Justice Division. I highly recommend that you visit the ADA web site (http://ada.gov) and become knowledgeable of this Act, specifically of the rights of disabled people with service dogs (https://www.ada.gov/topics/service-animals/). 

So for those who were unaware, no, you can’t ask for a deposit or anything that you would not ask of all your customers. It’s disheartening to still face discrimination. But people like my mom give me hope.