But like every new paradigm, the idea of inclusivity, falling into the heads of excessively reticent and insufficiently deep-thinking heads, strives for total realization and... comes to an outright absurdity.
Olga Chernova, chief project architect at archimatika company
For example, the point of the project of the new regulation on inclusiveness, which states that the bathrooms of all apartments must be adapted to the needs of disabled people, is, without a doubt, complete nonsense!
The number of disabled people is only 1% of the population. And equipping each apartment with a toilet taking into account their needs means making it larger in size. It will increase the bathroom - also means to make another room, for example, a bedroom, smaller. It turns out that for the sake of the special needs of 1%, the remaining 99% must suffer from irrational use of the apartment area!
Photo: Elevate on Unsplash
In my opinion, the question should be solved in a completely different way: of course, no one is immune from an accident that can make us less mobile. And, unfortunately, it is possible that we will end up in a cast or in a wheelchair. But after all, we are not asking to plaster healthy parts of the body in connection with this! And we don't stock up on wheelchairs while spending our free time improving ego management skills! This sounds as absurd as the claimant spending his money, investing it in an inflated "for every firefighter" area of the premises, instead of being able to choose an apartment with the ratio of areas of functional areas that your real, not "post-apocalyptic" requires way of life
Inclusiveness is inclusion in the active life of less mobile groups of the population. But this is by no means the reincarnation of the dream of universal equality!
Yes, there should be a certain number of apartments adapted for disabled people on the market. Yes, the procedures for exchanging apartments, buying and selling, and renting should be simplified as much as possible (and this is not only for the sake of the less mobile groups of the population, but also for the sake of everyone else - those who today have the reason to change the area of the apartment, layout or location on average in 2-4 years, which is, to put it mildly, difficult to implement under the current rules of purchase and sale).
Inclusiveness is inclusion in the active life of less mobile groups of the population. But this is by no means the reincarnation of the dream of universal equality!
Active life is the opportunity to participate in work, social life, and entertainment. But by no means in all possible types of activity and public life! Not in all types of recreation! Because no one, not even the healthiest and at the same time intelligent person, can become a participant in absolutely all variations of human activity.
Photo: Bogdan Todoran on Unsplash
- Did you jump with a parachute? Excellent! Did they dance the Viennese waltz? Wonderful! Did you go skiing? Excellent! Conquered snow-covered five-thousanders? Unbelievable! Diving? Of course! Chess blitz tournament? Of course! Street racing? You ask! A competition for the preparation of unsurpassed desserts? In the apple!
And now name me such a superman, and I recognize the reasonable claims of the apologists of universal equality!
But agree: there are simply no such things! There are no people who equally successfully dance, conquer peaks, masterfully play chess and at the same time prepare excellent desserts. Simply because if we focus on one thing, something else will inevitably be left without the proper attention necessary to achieve impressive success. This makes us individual and unique, but at the same time limited!
There are no people who equally successfully dance, conquer peaks, masterfully play chess and at the same time prepare excellent desserts
For example, I can state my limitations in the fact that I will probably never climb Everest, I will never win a chess match and I will never prepare a dessert more complicated than... pancakes.
But I do not expect that someone is legally obliged to create for me a "magic oven of incomparable desserts", a set of chess pieces endowed with consciousness, which will democratically discuss the situation on the board and recommend optimal moves for me, and, finally, build a ramp for me to Everest! I don't need such equality!
People are not equal, because they are different, different from each other and talented in their own way. None of the climbers, masters of dessert cooking and chess grandmasters will design an architectural space the way I do! And I will not try to pull the blanket over myself, having achieved them. But instead, I will happily admire their unattainable success for me!
Photo: Michal Dolnik on Unsplash
People with health disabilities are also limited, they are individual, they are talented in their own way. As architects, and as simply conscious citizens, we are obliged to create a barrier-free public space that allows them to participate in all basic activities. Allow me to offer an approximate list:
- street, square, park, public transport;
- office work;
- shopping;
- museums, libraries, concert halls;
- all variants of "public houses" and, of course, a state institution in the format of an admin service;
- all medical institutions;
- children's and adult educational establishments;
- public opinion
But leave the second without mandatory regulatory requirements of equality of opportunity!
And in particular, personal space, an apartment, a house: no one has the right to demand that a person prepare his private home in advance for the fact that its occupant will suddenly become disabled!
We are obliged to create a barrier-free public space that allows people with disabilities to participate in all basic activities
Do you disagree with me and think that it is necessary to prepare for disability in advance? Perhaps you are able to convince these people of the expediency. Some may believe you and create a demand for an apartment suitable for such a scenario, which the developers will immediately have to implement.
But you have no right to demand this from others!
