Being a contortionist to use the dishwasher

Wheelchair Dancer wrote about how letters have been sent out to enforce the provisions of the Fair Housing Act regarding accessibility for those with disabilities in New York city recently.

Another NY Times article talks about accessible homes in New York that aren't accessible, according to people with disabilities who live in them.

To spend an afternoon with Ms. Galler, 72, as she navigates her supposedly accessible apartment in Battery Park City is to understand the difficulties those who use wheelchairs can confront in newer housing. “Most people might never imagine these difficulties,” said Ms. Galler, who contracted polio at the age of 10 but was able to walk until a few years ago.

She cannot open or close windows by herself because the locks are too high. She cannot get her wheelchair into the bedroom closet — and has not returned to her bathroom in the wheelchair since being trapped there for two hours. Now she takes several laborious steps with braces to enter the room. Her bathtub is unreachable. “I can use the dishwasher only by being a contortionist,” she said.

The garbage disposal room down the hall is a wheelchair barricade. And, she added, “my kitchen cabinets? Very beautiful. But I can’t reach them.”

Due to the lack of accessible housing, some disabled tenants are like virtual prisoners, according to Ms. Galler, who have to live in basements while seeking out accessible housing that is difficult to find. Some end up in either shelters or nursing homes when they don't need to be there.