A barrier to entry. In 2022, 167 people, the majority of whom were women, were banned from entering a public place with their guide or assistance dog last year. Among them are 120 disabled people, 46 host families who take care of these dogs when they are young and a dog trainer, details the annual report of the Observatory on the Accessibility of Guide Dogs and Dogs on Wednesday. assistance (Obac). Outlaw refusals, underlines this report.
Access for guide dogs for the blind and assistance dogs for disabled people to all places open to the public has been enshrined in law since 1987. “There is unfortunately still too much discrimination and too many people who confuse dogs guides with ordinary dogs,” comments Paul Charles, president of Canidea, the organization that runs Obac. “They are educated specifically not to touch anything in a business or restaurant,” he adds.
Validism tinged with sexism
In total, 38% of refusals were issued by tourism stakeholders, who often ask themselves “the question of the image of the presence of the dog in the establishment”. They “are worried about the disturbance that the animal would cause”, which could push some customers to leave a negative review of their business on the Internet. A quarter of refusals are issued by carriers. “The diversification of operators, some of whom are recent on the French market, makes dialogue and dissemination of the message difficult,” underlines the report.
Validist discrimination also tinged with sexism. The report highlights the questioning of the legitimacy of women to operate in the public space, with two thirds of the cases noted by the Observatory concerning females. The person behind a refusal “will more easily allow himself to question a mistress accompanied by her dog, than a master”, denounces the report.
The number of access refusals is, however, likely higher than 167 because many people do not report incidents, according to the associations. A dedicated application and website should facilitate declarations, from 2024. When an incident is reported to the associations, they undertake mediation. They conducted 132 last year. Obac also identified five complaints filed. Around 2,700 guide and assistance dogs are currently in service in France.