Posted on 01/12/2012 10:15:06 PM PST by Orange1998
SAN FRANCISCO, CA -- Redbox is being sued by a group of people with disabilities. The federal civil rights lawsuit says the giant movie rental service discriminates against blind people.
Many movies are dialogue driven and can be enjoyed by the visually impaired.
"You can enjoy large aspects of the narrative without needing to see the visual aspect of the movie at all," Disability Rights Advocates lawyer Michael Nunez said.
Friends and family can also help.
"If there's kind of a non-verbal part of the movie happening, you know, they'll describe what's happening to me," lawsuit plaintiff Lisamaria Martinez said.
But the kiosks of the video rental giant Redbox are difficult, if not impossible, to use for those who are blind and visually impaired. The lawsuit says Redbox needs to change the technology in their kiosks so the visually impaired can rent movies too.
"They have neither tactile buttons nor any other screen feature that would allow blind people to navigate their way through the kiosks," Martinez said.
Martinez and Nunez are almost totally blind. Martinez is suing Redbox. Nunez is a lawyer from Disability Rights Advocates, who's filed the civil rights lawsuit.
For Martinez and others with the same disability, Redbox's touch screen is just another flat surface.
(Excerpt) Read more at abclocal.go.com ...
DAMN good point! Gators’d eat ‘em, though!
ADA playgrounds - you see them at virtually every school, and that probably cost $380,000 + $50,000 per year upkeep, even if the school has never hosted a student which required such facilities.
ADA bathrooms - Likely your local elementary school lost a full bathroom + 2 stalls to make the bathrooms ADA compatible, likely costing another $300,000 in conversion. Adding ramps and other amenities totals it up to a million dollars per elementary school. All to prevent schools which may never have had a wheelchair bound student from being sued.
All it takes for the most insane and stupid ideas is a compassionate conservative.. Think EPA, ADA, Amnesty, etc... And thank a Republican.
Yeah, a conservative congress will be TOTALLY able to control the liberal Mitt Romney...
One of the things that has me shaking my head every time is when I have to design around ADA in an upper level location that is only accessible by stairs. I'm not kidding, even though there is no possible way to access a space by wheel chair, if you are remodeling that space, outside of a narrow few exceptions, it must meet ADA specs.
One time I've actually had an inspector giving me grief over a door to a mechanical room not complying with ADA. This room was located on a roof that was only accessible by a ship's ladder. I eventually won that argument but it cost the building owner at least a day of billable time.
I hate the ADA.
As of March 15th, public pools will have to be outfitted with accessibility chairs so handicapped people can enter the pool. If you have a very large pool which a lot of apartment complexes have, you have to have TWO chairs. And if you have a spa, that has to be outfitted to. These chairs are gonna cost anywhere from 5 to 8 thousand EACH! If you think so what, this doesn’t effect me, think again. The govt is offering complexes $10,000 tax credits to help offset some of the extravagant costs.
Do you know if that is a Fed or state mandate?
Currently we are operating under IBC codes however many ADA requirements are enacted by individual States.... many start in California.
Im a pool guy here in CA. I just heard about it from one of my suppliers yesterday morning.
Heres some info. Just do an ADA, handicap pool access search on google and you’ll find more info.
On September 15, 2010, the Final Rule for the Accessible Design for Recreational Facilities, including public pools and spas, was published in the Federal Register. These standards becamethe law of the land on March 15, 2011, and compliance is required by March 15, 2012. Compliance with the 2010 Standards for Accessible Design for pools and spas will be required for pools and spas that serve the public.
“... who drove them to the REDBOX?”
I guess the same person who drove them to the ATM (they have braille). Never understood that one either.
One of the stupidest things I have ever heard. Wow!
The person that took them to the store can get a film for them.
That would be considered “normal”.
Can’t have that in a world run by abby and the lawyers.
Apple provides Voiceover to allow the blind to use an iPhone. The system "speaks" the letters on the virtual keypad and then you double-tap to enter a particular key. I guess with millions of phones out there, Apple wanted to be sure it wasn't hit with silly law suits such as this one against Redbox.
My fantasy of the day is making a video of breaking this lawyers’ fingers while he screams “I CONFESS! I’m a greedy piece of snakeshyt AIIIEEEE!!!”
Recently, I was told that the Federal Gov., thus it's buildings, is exempt from the Americans with Disabilities act?
Can anyone confirm?
When I was in high school back in the 70’s, we had a student who had muscular dystrophy and was confined to a wheelchair. The school was two stories and had no elevators. How did he get to his upstairs classes? The school athletes (football players) carried him and his chair up and down the stairs. It was a thing of honor to help him.
Of course, students today couldn’t care about anyone but themselves.
“UM...who drove them to the REDBOX??? Or...don’t they have a friend or relative they could get to get the movies...sheesh...this is ridiculous!”
Its all about Money and control, “F” both of them!
Mr. GINGRICH. Mr. Speaker, The National Council on Disability is an independent Federal agency comprised of 15 Presidentially appointed members. The Council's mandate is to review policies and programs which impact upon persons with disabilities and make recommendations to the President and the Congress concerning how these policies can be improved. In 1984, the National Council issued a policy statement entitled `National Policy for Persons with Disabilities ,' which articulated the need for legislation which would provide comprehensive civil rights protections for persons with disabilities . After the publication of this statement, the National Council held numerous forums across the country in which it heard from literally thousands of persons with disabilities about the discrimination they face every day.THis was when GIngrich was a solid conservative, in the 1990s.In February 1986, the National Council issued a major report to the President and the Congress entitled, `Toward Independence.' In this report the National Council outlined the key components required for comprehensive civil rights legislation protecting persons with disabilities . This report was well received by the Congress and has become central in the development of the `Americans With Disabilities Act' [ADA]. In January 1988, the National Council issued another report, `On the Threshold of Independence,' in which the National Council authored the specifics of the `Americans With Disabilities Act of 1988.' The goals of the ADA, currently being debated by the House of Representatives, are to remove attitudinal, architectural, transportation, communication, and employment barriers which exist for persons with disabilities in American society.
I agree with the National Council on Disability in its belief that the provisions of this legislation send persons with disabilities a clear message that their dream of equal civil rights protections will soon become a reality.
Gingrich Also voted for it. And so did almost every other Republican — there were only 28 votes against it, 23 republican and 5 democrat.
You can’t pin that on Bush. It was the entire Republican party.
They will set there and rust up due to non use, either that or the kids will break them up playing on them.
Speaker of the House Newt Gingrich has labeled the ADA "a dumb use of resources," while House Majority Leader Dick Armey blasts it as "a disaster" and "an abomination."
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.