Don’t Patronise Me! by Ross Lannon

If you know me well, then you’ll know that my car is my pride and joy.  I passed my driving test nearly 10 years ago and as a disabled young man, I can honestly say that this was one of my proudest achievements.  For today’s blog post I am going to share something a little bit different with you, the story of an incident that happened to me a few years back.

I was sat parked in my car, minding my own business and then BOOM!  Somebody reversed straight into me.  It was almost as if it happened in slow motion.  I could see the car coming towards me and I remember thinking, “surely they’re going to stop now?!”.  Accidents like this happen all the time but it was what happened next that really bugged me.

“I was just frustrated with his whole attitude towards me being a disabled driver.”

The Aftermath

At first I was in shock, the impact felt hard and I couldn’t believe what had happened.  To my surprise, the driver then pulled forward at speed, as if he was going to drive off.  I quickly took a photo of the car’s registration plate and beeped my horn.  He then stopped in the middle of the road, pulled back and proceeded to get out of the car.  To be honest, I don’t think he would have stopped at all unless I had beeped.  I genuinely believe he was shocked to see me – he clearly didn’t realise someone was in the car.  By the time I had taken my seatbelt off, he was already at my window.  Body language is key and his stance already felt aggressive.  The first thing I said was: “I hope you weren’t going to just drive off then!”  He replied: “Oh…did I bump into you?!”

Really mate, really?!

Using my electric key fob for rear boot access, I then got out of my car to see what damage had been done.  Luckily it wasn’t half as bad as I had thought and it was a relief to see that his bumper had taken the brunt of it, so you know…every cloud ‘n’ all that.  However the second he saw I was a wheelchair user, I felt his whole attitude change and the way he spoke to me seemed very patronising.  Maybe he was just trying to be “overly friendly” but I found it very condescending when he insisted on helping me back into my car, as if I was incapable.  I repeatedly and strongly said “no” on a number of occasions, until he finally left me alone.

Luckily nobody was hurt and the car was still in one piece.  I was just frustrated with his whole attitude towards me being a disabled driver.  This is why I campaign so hard to break down negative stereotypes and disability assumptions.

Changed Days

I am proud of the way I handled myself, as few years ago I probably would have just sat there, taken the bump and not said a word.  Sometimes all it takes is little moments like this for me to sit back and realise how far I’ve come in terms of confidence and character building.

Stay safe guys and just remember, when reversing…check your mirrors!!