A state senator is pushing for legislation to install changing tables in public places for adults with special needs.
Betty Williams must consider whether there will be access to changing tables each time she’s invited to an event.
“I can’t go everywhere I want to go,” Williams said. “I have to get changed every two hours or when I need to.”
What You Need To Know
- State Sen. Pete Harckham is proposing new legislation — the “Traveling with Dignity Act” — that would provide adult changing tables in public spaces statewide
- The current lack of adult changing tables prevents some New Yorkers from traveling
- The senator said seniors, veterans with traumatic injuries and those born with disabilities could all benefit from the legislation
Williams has post-polio syndrome and paraplegia. She uses a wheelchair and lives in an apartment through Constructive Partnerships (CP) Unlimited in Wappingers Falls.
When a group went on a trip to Albany, Williams said she couldn’t go because there were no adult changing facilities on the route up the Thruway and in the state capital.
“Upset, mad because I want to go; sometimes I want to go to Albany, but they don’t have no changing tables,” Williams said.
New York state Sen. Pete Harckham is proposing new legislation — the “Traveling with Dignity Act” — that would provide adult changing tables in public spaces throughout the state, including, rest areas, museums, libraries and government-owned facilities.
“People need to have the dignity of privacy and accommodations that are suitable for their needs. And right now, we don't,” Harckham said. “It's an opportunity to give back to folks who give so much to so many others.”
The senator said seniors, veterans with traumatic injuries and those born with other disabilities could all benefit from the legislation.
Diego Ortiz has cerebral palsy. He’s able to travel but sees the direct struggles that people who need more assistance than him go through.
“I feel bad for the people that can't go anywhere and join the functions that we have,” Ortiz said.
He said installing the proper facilities is important so these groups of people can socialize.
“They're not going to end up making friends [without the facilities], and ... that's unacceptable,” Ortiz said.
With this proposed legislation, there’s hope more people will have access to traveling and events, such as concerts and sports games.
Harckham said he hopes to see the bill go into committee when the legislature returns in January.