• About
  • Contact
  • Subscribe
  • Download App
  • Virtual Summit
  • Benefit Hub for Subscribers Only
SWHELPER | Social Work | Social Justice | Social Good
No Result
View All Result
  • Login
  • Register
  • Home
  • News
  • Culture
  • Mental Health
  • Politics
  • Tech
  • Disability
  • Webinars
  • Podcast
Find/Post Jobs
  • Home
  • News
  • Culture
  • Mental Health
  • Politics
  • Tech
  • Disability
  • Webinars
  • Podcast
No Result
View All Result
SWHELPER | Social Work | Social Justice | Social Good
No Result
View All Result
Home Social Justice Criminal Justice

Delta Airlines Alleged Mistreatment to Disabled Passenger

Vilissa ThompsonbyVilissa Thompson
April 7, 2019
in Criminal Justice, Disability, News
0
ADVERTISEMENT
Share on FacebookShare on TwitterShare on LinkedinShare on PinterestShare via EmailShare on Reddit

Delta Airlines is being sued on allegations of mistreating a disabled passenger by not providing reasonable accommodations for him to board and exit the plane.  Baraka Kanaan, a man who became disabled in 2000 after sustaining severe spinal injuries from a car accident, filed a lawsuit in the U.S. District Court of Hawaii last week.  The lawsuit states that he was “‘forced to crawl across an airport tarmac, up and down the stairs of an airplane, down the aisle of the aircraft and out of and into his seat’ on a series of flights between Massachusetts and Hawaii July 2012.”  Mr. Kanaan claims that he had endured such treatment not once, but twice, while flying with Delta Airlines.  Mr. Kanaan alleges that the flight attendants did not offer to assist him in any way as he painstakingly made his way across the tarmac.  The only assistance those at Delta offered Mr. Kanaan was a piece of cardboard he could sit on that would keep his clothes from becoming filthy.

If Mr. Kanaan claims are proven to be true, then Delta Airlines would be in direct violation of the Air Carrier Access Act (ACAA) of 1986 and section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973.  These pieces of legislation requires airports and air carriers to “provide boarding assistance to individuals with disabilities by using ramps, mechanical lifts, or other suitable devices where level-entry boarding by loading bridge or mobile lounge is not available on any aircraft with a seating capacity of 31 or more passengers.”

Airline Worker with Wheelchair 1As there are more than 50 million Americans with disabilities in the United States who could use this mode of transportation as a desirable option, such allegations against a major airline carrier are incredibly disturbing, humiliating, and dehumanizing.  Those with disabilities are accustomed to being “creative”  when faced with accessibility issues while travelling, whether on land or by air, but such actions of insensitivity and ill-preparedness by a major corporation like Delta Airlines are inexcusable.  As those at Delta watched Mr. Kanaan crawl on the tarmac in refusal to assist him because of a “liability” issue, Delta had a responsibility and liability to provide accommodations to Mr. Kanaan so that he could board and exit the plane by means that were appropriate to his medical condition and physical functioning.  This gross inaction and insensitivity are not simple “oversights;” they are prime examples of how ableism exists when it comes to people with disabilities living their lives and needing reasonable accommodations to do simple tasks such as making their way across the tarmac.  Mr. Kanaan’s case may be one of a handful to make it to a U.S. District Court, but people with disabilities encounter “liability” perceptions and lack of reasonable accommodations everyday in our country.

I plan to follow this case as it makes its way through the federal court system, and I will keep Social Work Helper’s readers informed of new developments as they are made public.

(Featured headline image:  Courtesy of Travel Agent Central.)

Share this:

  • Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on Twitter (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on LinkedIn (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on Tumblr (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on Reddit (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on Pinterest (Opens in new window)
  • Click to print (Opens in new window)
  • Click to email a link to a friend (Opens in new window)
ADVERTISEMENT
Previous Post

How to Get More Followers on Pinterest

Next Post

How Businesses Are Taking Advantage of Teachers Without Jobs

Vilissa Thompson

Vilissa Thompson

Vilissa Thompson, LMSW is the Disability and Advocacy Staff Writer for Social Work Helper, and she is also the Founder of Ramp Your Voice! In addition to being a Disability Rights Consultant and Advocate, Vilissa seeks to propel the faces and voices of people of color with disabilities both within the disability community and in the general public. Vilissa can be contacted via email at [email protected], or by visiting the Ramp Your Voice! website at http://www.rampyourvoice.com/.

Related Posts

Do District-Based Elections For School Board Help Minority Candidates Get Elected?
News

NASW Opposes Association of Social Work Boards (ASWB) Exams

February 9, 2023
5 Ways To Boost Employee Wellbeing
Health

5 Ways To Boost Employee Wellbeing

January 7, 2023
What is High Performance Culture and How to Create It
Business

What is High Performance Culture and How to Create It

January 7, 2023
Morgan State University Professor Anthony Estreet to be next CEO of NASW
News

Morgan State University Professor Anthony Estreet to be next CEO of NASW

January 5, 2023
Sex Trafficking Survivor Files Lawsuit Against Red Roof Inns
Human Rights

Sex Trafficking Survivor Files Lawsuit Against Red Roof Inns

January 4, 2023
When Reporters of Sexual Harassment Are Silenced By Advocacy Institutions the Harm is Far Worst
Education

When Reporters of Sexual Harassment Are Silenced By Advocacy Institutions the Harm is Far Worst

January 3, 2023
Next Post
How Businesses Are Taking Advantage of Teachers Without Jobs

How Businesses Are Taking Advantage of Teachers Without Jobs

4 Ways Schools Can Help Students With Mental Illness

4 Ways Schools Can Help Students With Mental Illness

Leave Comment
ADVERTISEMENT
What Can Be Done To Solve The Foster Care Crisis?

Ending the Therapeutic Relationship: Creative Termination Activities

June 24, 2022
What Feelings Are In Your Heart: An Art Therapy Exercise for Kids

What Feelings Are In Your Heart: An Art Therapy Exercise for Kids

June 19, 2022
Want to Work With Children: 5 Skills and Qualities You Should Be Working On

Want to Work With Children: 5 Skills and Qualities You Should Be Working On

April 7, 2019

Connect With Us

Twitter
FlipboardInstagram
ADVERTISEMENT
Facebook Twitter LinkedIn Instagram TikTok
SWHELPER | Social Work | Social Justice | Social Good

  • Contact
  • Subscribe
  • Buy Merch
  • Download App
  • Terms of Service
https://youtu.be/jWzjyPoSjtw

© 2022 Social Work Helper, PBC

No Result
View All Result
  • Home
    • News
    • Culture
    • Technology
    • Politics
    • Criminal Justice
    • Social Work
    • Education
    • LGBTQ
    • Technology
    • Disability
  • About Us
  • Contact
  • Webinars
  • Virtual Summit
  • Career Center
  • Download App
  • Subscriber Benefit Hub
  • Subscribe
  • Login
  • Sign Up
  • Cart

© 2022 Social Work Helper, PBC

Welcome Back!

Sign In with Facebook
Sign In with Google
Sign In with Linked In
OR

Login to your account below

Forgotten Password? Sign Up

Create New Account!

Sign Up with Facebook
Sign Up with Google
Sign Up with Linked In
OR

Fill the forms below to register

*By registering into our website, you agree to the Terms & Conditions and Privacy Policy.
All fields are required. Log In

Retrieve your password

Please enter your username or email address to reset your password.

Log In
This website uses cookies. By continuing to use this website you are giving consent to cookies being used. Visit our Privacy and Cookie Policy.