The plight of handicapped individuals in Brazil
Last activity 30 January 2016 by James
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The plight of handicapped individuals in Brazil.
One would think that a nation, that even remotely imagines itself capable of hosting world class events such as the FIFA World Cup 2014 and the Summer Olympic Games 2016, would give at least a little bit of thought to the thousands of handicapped people who will likely be attending these events if they don’t give any to their own citizens with special needs. If you are thinking along these lines, please think again – Brazil is one of the least “handicapped friendly” nations in the Americas.
Every time I hear a Brazilian utter the term that their country is “um país democrático de direito” I have the overwhelming urge to laugh in their faces. Sure, the country has laws coming out their ears, but nobody obeys those laws for the simple fact that here nobody enforces them. Coming from North America there were just so many things that I took for granted and never even noticed because I was then able bodied and had my sight. Things like level and well maintained and unobstructed sidewalks, pedestrian crosswalks at every intersection, audible pedestrian crosswalk signals, ramped sidewalks at all pedestrian crossings, etc. Hardly any of these “luxuries” exist in Brazil.
Despite the fact that there are over six and a half million blind and visually impaired people in Brazil, due to a complete absence of training facilities there are presently only around 70 guide-dogs for the blind in the whole country. Back in Canada it was extremely rare to see a blind person who didn’t have a guide-dog. In the City of Vancouver alone there are probably more than 70 guide-dogs. Here in all my years in this country I’ve only ever seen two and both of those in South America’s largest and most populated city – São Paulo. As if the lack of availability of guide-dogs isn’t a big enough of an obstacle to overcome anyone who has had the great fortune of obtaining a service dog soon finds out they will face countless more obstacles along the way.
While federal law guarantees unrestricted access to individuals with guide-dogs to all public places (except certain areas in hospitals that require sterile conditions) and all forms of public transportation they are routinely barred access due to ignorance of the law and/or outright discrimination. There have been numerous news reports of people being refused entry to banks, restaurants, shopping malls, taxis that refuse fares who are accompanied by guide-dogs, buses that won’t stop to allow people in wheelchairs or with guide-dogs to board, airlines companies that won’t board passengers with guide-dogs, etc. In fact, most of those who do have guide-dogs have found it necessary to carry a copy of the current federal law with them at all times and even this isn’t enough to resolve their problems. In one recent case in São Paulo a client was removed from the lineup in a bank and asked to leave, despite the fact that there was even a sign clearly posted at the bank’s entrance which stated the federal law. The client was forced to call police and only then the problem was resolved. In another case a national television network accompanied a man with his guide-dog through a number of eateries where in one after another he was barred from entering because of the guide-dog. Of course all those responsible for these establishments claim ignorance of the law and state that animals are not permitted in eating establishments. This is absolutely untrue; they are only barred from the area of those establishments where food is being prepared, not consumed. I have spoken to a number of individuals who state this is the reason that they wouldn’t opt for a guide-dog instead of a white cane; too many problems relating to refusal of access in places that the law clearly permits.
Sidewalks are another shameful situation in this country. Unlike most other civilized nations in which sidewalks are constructed and maintained by the city, remain the legal responsibility of the city and are subject to strict enforcement of misuse that is not the case anywhere in Brazil. Even in São Paulo the largest metropolis in all of Latin-America sidewalks are death-traps. There is no standardization, they aren’t level, have in many cases huge differences in height from one property to the next. In most locations utility and light poles, street signs, trees, street furniture all make navigating the city like walking through a mine field. Downtown São Paulo and Rio are prime examples of this; bars and restaurants especially view sidewalks simply as an extension of their establishment. They place tables and chairs out on the public sidewalk and in many cases block it completely despite the fact that this violates the law. The practice continues unabated since there is no enforcement ever. In some cases fights have broken out when a mother pushing her child down the street in a baby carriage has asked to be allowed to pass. Anyone with any kind of mobility or visual handicap is abandoned to their own luck when the subject is sidewalks. In many cases ramps at the corners don’t exist. While in downtown São Paulo and in almost every train and subway station there are special tactile trails for blind people to follow with their canes hardly anyone knows what these have been placed in the sidewalks or stations for and they obstruct them without a second thought. Metrô and CPTM make no public announcements whatsoever about the yellow tactile strips to alert other passengers not to obstruct them.
As far as I’m aware even in São Paulo there exists ONLY ONE audible crosswalk signal. It is located on Rua Conselheiro Broteiro near the Brazilian Association for the Assistance of Persons with Visual Disability. As far as the rest of the country is concerned I doubt that any audible signals even exist.
If you’re coming to Brazil and you have any mobility restriction or visual impairment be prepared to face all kinds of problems. If you have a guide-dog even more still if you can even get on the aircraft to get here in the first place, you’re likely not going to find a taxi at the airport who will take you into the city.
Brazil, “um país democrático de direito”, what a freaking laugh!!!! Just where are the rights of handicapped people in this country, anyway???????
For those of you who are fluent in Portuguese, the following news article was posted on the Globo G1 website about a young student, Luisa Leão who just returned from the USA where she was fortunate enough to obtain a guide-dog.
She is the first person in the State of Pará to have a guide dog and of course as you guess it wasn't from Brazil, since they aren't trained here.
http://g1.globo.com/pa/para/noticia/201 … do-pa.html
While I'm deleriously happy for her great fortune in getting a much needed helper who is certainly going to change her life, I don't envy her the long uphill battle she is now going to face just to get acceptance in Brazilian society for her and her guide-dog.
As far as I'm aware there is nobody in Macaé who has a guide-dog. If by some miracle I am able to find a suitable dog and train it as a guide-dog I know that I'm going to be confronted with all kinds of new barriers just because of the dog. I will fight to my last breath for more recongition in this country and that the present laws be backed up with strict enforcement and penalties for those who don't obey them.
I'm sure if you had remained in Canada your health would be much better. Mine is deteriorating. It's kind of ironic they only have one audible cross walk in SP and conveniently located near a visual disabilities organization.
The truth is though, Brazil is nothing compared to Colombia. No one other than government employees get preferential treatment there. In fact I don't recall seeing many wheelchairs either. Therefor you are screwed if you can't walk or require assistance.
Regardless, Brazil and most of SA have a long way to go in terms of enforcing laws or establishing new laws that respect the rights of impaired people. A law that is not enforced is pointless. But God forbid a politician become disabled! Laws would be enforced immediately!
Matt-
Hi Matt,
You're absolutely right because had I remained in Canada chances are very good that I wouldn't have been attacked in the street in the first place, which was the cause of the traumatic retinal detachment that caused the complete loss of sight of my right eye and its eventual shrinkage. Back in Canada you can walk the streets day and night without the fear of being accosted.
My other vision problems would have been treated quickly and by specialists who have been well trained, as opposed to a so-called Ofthalmologist/Surgeon who simply allowed a student to perform an operation that she said she would be doing personally. And Brazilian doctors (mostly quacks) are up in arms about doctors being brought in from foreign countries????
Cheers,
James
I was walking around on crutches a few months ago and it surprised me how little Hong Kong cares about handicapped people. It's a highly developed city, but if you can't climb stairs or steep hills, you're in trouble. If you're in a wheelchair, forget it. I was only temporarily immobile. I can only imagine how hard it is for people with permanent disabilities around here.
I've never seen a guide dog here, but we do have those tactile sidewalk strips for blind people.
Well, I still haven't had much success in my search for a guide dog. Canadian Guide Dogs for the Blind, PADS, and the US training schools I have contacted don't send dogs to Brazil. So it looks like I'm faced with trying to obtain a dog here in Brazil and have it trained before my eyesight goes completely. Fortunately the law allows for Guide Dogs to be trained by certified trainers and I won't have too much difficulty finding someone for that.
If any of the Brazil Forum members know of someone (hopefully in RJ and not far from Macaé) who has a Labrador pup around 6 months of age that they would be willing to donate please let me know through the Private Message System. While I'd like a Yellow Lab, I'm not in a position to be picky. If it's not too far from Macaé I can make arrangements to come by bus to pick up the dog.
Cheers,
James Expat-blog Experts Team
I guess that with the 2016 Olympic Games in Rio approaching that it's about time to reactivate this topic thread. Unfortunately since I last posted on this issue absolutely nothing has changed in any way.
Individuals with reduced mobility are still forced to roll down busy streets in major cities like São Paulo, Rio, Belo Horizonte because sidewalks are obstructed with "street furniture", poorly maintained, completely absent, or have several different levels between properties.
Those with visual impairments still find it virtually impossible to obtain Guide Dogs, and those few who have been so fortunate as to find one, are barred from entering many establishments because of ignorance of the laws and a complete lack of enforcement and fines. On an optimistic note I know of at least two other crosswalks which have audible signals one in Rio de Janeiro and believe it or not one here in Macaé (in front of the bus depot). In most cities one must, of necessity, have someone accompany them wherever they go, or at the very minimum rely on total strangers for assistance to do things like cross busy streets.
As for myself, I'm still no closer to finding a donated dog suitable to train as a Guide Dog or any registered trainer who would be willing to take on such a task on a volunteer basis, since I live on a very small (fixed) retirement pension and couldn't possibly afford the nearly USD $50 thousand price tag of a North American dog. Fortunately my eyesight has not gone completely so I'm still able to manage with minimal assistance from others, or using my white cane all of the time. Hopefully I can put that day off for a while yet.
I have to wonder just how many of the "luxuries" that are commonplace mobility aids in most other countries would exist here too, were it not for all the graft and corruption that goes on here???
Cheers,
James
expat.com Experts Team
And how about those incredibly dangerous side-walks in the smaller towns with drop-offs of two or three feet. Even for a person who is not handicapped, these present a real problem.
Sidewalk 1, Gringo 0
https://picasaweb.google.com/1033204785 … directlink
This sidewalk has been in this condition for several years and only gets worse. Have walked it many times so I was aware of it. Last week I fell here, right into the crosswalk. One little part of the sidewalk nailed me as I was looking to the traffic signal to see if it was ok to cross. Went down like a sack of cement being dropped. Two people came to assist me. I think it probably looked bad to anyone watching. It felt bad! I was lucky....nothing broken.
30 years here and this is the first time I have fallen. Or, to put it another way, it is the first time the sidewalk won. I've seen others go down; usually women. Brazil always gets the bad win in the long run. So as the say "deal with it"! vIt ain't gonna change in your lifetime. :-)
I never really appreciated how important the Americans with disabilities act is until I moved here. With the exception of shopping malls I don't think I have seen any ramps leading into buildings, not even government buildings. Many elevators will not fit a wheelchair. I can't tell you how many times I have been walking with my wife somewhere and said " man, I guess your just F'ed if you need to do x, y or z thing and your in a wheelchair". And for people like James who are visually impaired or blind I can only imagine how a short walk can be crazy dangerous with the roads and sidewalks and intersections being how they are. I have no first hand knowledge, but I will wager that this is also a really bad place to have a learning disability or mental health issues. My family loves it here in Brazil and Brazilians are truly wonderful people, but I must say, if I were a native this particular situation would cause me to feel a great deal of shame. I would say that about the Government too, but I think we all know that shame is not an emotion they are even capable of feeling! Anyway, it's really sad, but, if any of my family were to (god forbid) become disabled in some way I think we would just have to move back to the states.
Actually, while most of the public education system really is screwed up, I must admit that they certainly do offer lots of services for learning disabled children. Also when in the few cases that the school itself doesn't provide a special assistant for the child they certainly are free to bring their own along.
Cheers,
James
expat.com Experts Team
Interesting, though lamentable, article in the Folha just now.
"Não há estatísticas oficiais sobre a quantidade de cães-guias no Brasil, mas as instituições especializadas estimam em menos de cem em todo o país, diante de uma população de 582 mil pessoas cegas..."
Taxista chamado por aplicativo se nega a transportar cega com cão-guia http://folha.com/no1734861
mataikhan wrote:Interesting, though lamentable, article in the Folha just now.
"Não há estatísticas oficiais sobre a quantidade de cães-guias no Brasil, mas as instituições especializadas estimam em menos de cem em todo o país, diante de uma população de 582 mil pessoas cegas..."
Taxista chamado por aplicativo se nega a transportar cega com cão-guia http://folha.com/no1734861
ENGLISH PLEASE !!!!
Hello mataikhan,
See they don't even have an accurate count of the handicapped, let alone guide dogs. There are over 6.5 million blind and severely visually impaired in Brazil. Depending on whose figures you accept as accurate there are only anywhere from 70 to 100 guide dogs in the whole country. Training facilities are virtually nonexistent in Brazil and dogs from abroad (if you are fortunate enough to obtain on) are extremely rare. That's exactly why I am looking to find a donor dog and have it trained privately.
The incident of the São Paulo taxi driver who refused a fare because she had a guide dog. I have only one thing to say on that and it's I don't know why she didn't call police and demand the driver be arrested for violating provisions of Decreto/Lei No. 11.126/2005 which provides for imprisonment, and fines.
That's the whole problem is that people in this country don't insist that the laws be enforced, so the laws are not respected. I've heard from many people who also use white canes that they don't want a dog because they have heard of how those with guide dogs have constantly been barred access to many places that the law clearly states they have a right to.
Anyway, management of the app 99taxis have banned him from using their app to obtain customers, so he will be penalized.
Cheers,
James
expat.com Experts Team
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