BARRHEAD – Members of the Barrhead Accessibility Coalition are one of the groups that will be losing a crosswalk after Barrhead voted 653-492 to ban decorative crosswalks, and non-federal, provincial, or municipal flags from flying on municipally owned facilities, properties, and flagpoles.
Criss Schaffrick, an advocate for Barrhead’s residents who live with a disability, said the results were a tough blow for a group that only painted their crosswalk earlier this summer.
“I’m extremely disheartened. Today is the International Day of the Disabled, and I get to come into work today on a day that should be a celebration and I get to tell the people I work with that they’re losing their crosswalk,” she said.
The crosswalk, which was painted on July 7, features a disability flag and includes five coloured stripes: green, blue, white, gold and red. Green represents sensory disabilities; blue represents emotional and psychiatric disabilities; white stands for non-visible and undiagnosed disabilities; gold stands for neurodiversity; and red represents physical disabilities. The black on the outside of the stripes recognizes and mourns people who were lost due to ableism, violence, negligence, suicide, illness, or eugenics.
“There’s been some ramps built into some of the businesses, and it's brought forward a lot of things that people didn’t think about before. If you don’t have a disability, you don’t think of this stuff.”
Throughout the discussion on the plebiscite, Schaffrick said she felt the discussion was dominated by Pride, and groups such as hers and the Barrhead legion were collateral damage in the entire process.
“It brought out a lot of hatred. I was surprised by the hatred that was directed towards the LGBTQ community,” she said. “The Canadian ensign flag will have to be removed from the cenotaph, I think that’s absolutely horrible.
“I thought I lived in an inclusive community, but this has definitely shown me that that’s not true."
The Barrhead vote comes just nine months after Westlock passed a similar bylaw banning decorative crosswalks and a variety of flags.
RELATED LINK: Westlock votes to ban Pride crosswalks, other flags by 24 votes
Under the Municipal Government Act, a petition with more than 10 per cent of a town’s population can force a plebiscite or bylaw to be enacted, and the Barrhead Neutrality group successfully collected 712 valid signatures earlier this fall.
Despite facing the removal of the sidewalk, Schaffrick said it had done a lot to bring awareness to a group that is often forgotten or invisible.
“There’s been some ramps built into some of the businesses and its brought forward a lot of things that people didn’t think about before. If you don’t have a disability, you don’t think of this stuff.”
“I honestly don’t think people realize the damage they have done to people with disabilities; even their mental health, because they were so excited. During one of our meetings, one of the ladies got so excited that she hit the table and said, ‘This is OUR crosswalk!.’ And now I have to tell her today that it’s gone.”