I think we must agree on two things.  1.  Different cultures perceive things in different ways.  2.  Translation leaves something to be desired and one must always consider that direct translation of words doesn't always equal direct translation of understanding.  Therefore, perhaps something has been lost in this conversation. 
 
That said, would anyone here call the following a privilege:
 
being blind?
having cerebral palsy?
having a medical diagnosis on the autism spectrum?
not being able to regulate sugar and having a life threatening condition as a result?
etc. etc. etc.
 
If you would not, then the accommodations provided to those people in order to make locations, programs, and content accessible to them are not privileges. I think it is quite fair to refer to the ADA and other disability accommodation discussions as rights, not privileges.
 
Brava, Jan, on a well crafted and thought out response.  I would only add that most accommodations don't even come close to leveling the playing field, but instead just put those in need of said accommodations on the playing field, albeit still un-level.

Jaki


On Mon, Sep 15, 2014 at 12:01 PM, adelheid straten <[log in to unmask]> wrote:
> Jan,
> 
> sorry: no, were are not treating the equal rights question here, we discuss the handling of privileges. To have a dog with you is an enormous priviledge in most museum generally not alllowing dogs. To get a drink allowed in exhibition rooms is a priviledge in museums generally not allowing to have a sip of water in their exhibition rooms. 
> I am not against these privileges, I woud grant them immediately. But only to the disabled, not to the rest.
> And, of course, more and more museums here are open to "inclusion". So, there is no need to twist the thread.
> 
> And: We are, of course, not talking here about people hiding their disabilities. These people exist, of course, but the thread started with Maria Via particular request: 
> 
> "The number of visitors who insist on taking beverages into the museum for medical reasons seems to have increased a lot lately.  Water (for a pulmonary condition, for example) isn’t so much an issue – we just ask them to be sure the bottle is capped tightly and stowed out of sight when not use.  On the other hand, many people are now saying they must have Coke or some kind of soft drink with them due to diabetes.  This is more problematic.  I’m wondering if others are seeing an uptick along these lines and, if so, how they are handling the balance between protecting collections and offering a good visitor service.  Thanks!
> 
> Let get back to this request, please, and how to handle it. 
> 
> Best
> 
> 
> Christian
> 
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