The Rise Of Australasia

Chapter 771 - 576: Special Group_1

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Throughout the history of humankind, the word "person" has taken on various definitions. For humanity, a person can be divided into many kinds, such as ancient and modern humans, men and women, adults and children, and so on.

Based on differences in race, people can also be categorized as Caucasian, Asian, Black, among other ethnicities.

No matter how populations are divided, there has always been one particular group that has failed to come into the public eye, and their presence is easily overlooked.

While some might suddenly feel compassion, most of the time they are forgotten—no one remembers them, and no one cares about them.

They are a group considered special compared to normal individuals because of various disabilities that lead to loss of basic capabilities.

This passage was published by a newspaper and sparked a heated discussion throughout Australasia.

Firstly, the scale of disabled individuals among Australasians. Compared to other countries, immigrant nations like Australasia tend to have a lower prevalence of disabled individuals.

This is because immigration is more difficult for disabled individuals, and many such families face various circumstances that lead to poor financial situations.

However, it must be acknowledged that there is still a considerable number of disabled people in Australasia, and their numbers are continually increasing.

According to recent surveys conducted by the Ministry of Civil Affairs, there are tens of thousands of students in blind schools across Australasia, and the actual number of blind people might be higher, probably in the six figures.

Yet, these individuals are hardly mentioned in Australasian policies and are almost invisible in daily life.

This also represents a rather sad reality: these disabled people have either been abandoned or, due to various reasons, are virtually deprived of their right to go outside.

It was due to this report that, for the first time during a session of the House of Representatives, the members brought up the issue of safeguarding the rights of disabled people. They requested that the government and the house formulate and perfect relevant laws to care for and protect the interests of more disabled individuals.

This topic caught the attention of a significant portion of people and brought disabled individuals into the public eye for the first time, as people started to become concerned about their lives.

In this context, we must mention Daisy Dodridge, the journalist from the small newspaper that published that report.

To help people understand the lives of disabled people more directly and clearly, Daisy Dodridge actually visited many schools for the disabled, including blind and deaf and mute schools, and conducted interviews with them.

"Little friend, do you have a wish?" Daisy Dodridge asked a blind child.

"A wish? I want to go out and walk around, but my parents are too busy, and I can’t go out alone. Mom said there are too many cars outside, and it would be very dangerous because I can’t see," the child replied without hesitation.

"Haven’t your parents taken you out before?" Daisy Dodridge continued to inquire.

"No. They are too busy, working all the time," the child answered with a hint of disappointment.

The world of special populations often differs from that of normal individuals. The greatest difference between disabled people and the general population is that they cannot have the life that most people take for granted.

However, under the current circumstances, this was an event that captured national attention, related to the hotly debated topic of safeguarding the interests of the disabled, so naturally, the responsibility could not be easily placed on the disabled individuals.

Ultimately, the compensation was provided by the government, and government officials also continually assured that relevant laws for the disabled would be perfected to ensure the safety of their travel.

One point worth considering in this incident was that the two blind individuals received no help at all in the suburbs.

This is worthy of deep reflection. Sydney’s suburbs are still part of the country’s capital and largest city, so a complete lack of people is impossible.

Yet the fact that the two blind individuals received no assistance indirectly led to the occurrence of this traffic accident.

Encouraged by the government, many media outlets began to publish suggestions about being willing to help, calling on people to lend a hand when encountering such situations and to help those with disabilities.

The House of Representatives also had a sudden inspiration, exploring the possibility of establishing a road in the city exclusively for disabled individuals, especially the blind.

As the number of disabled and blind people is not large, the road wouldn’t need to be very wide, not even half a meter would suffice. Find more to read on Freewebnovel

However, it must be easily distinguishable, allowing blind people to readily sense the difference between this exclusive road and other roads.

With this road as a guide, blind individuals would be able to avoid danger easily and confidently walk the streets.

This road was proposed by the members of the House of Representatives to be called Exclusive Road.

The reason for not naming it a blind lane or exclusive blind road is that using the word "blind," while emphasizing exclusivity for blind people, also creates too much differentiation from the roads used by sighted people.

To put it plainly, this could easily reflect discrimination against blind individuals, as wouldn’t a "blind lane" imply it’s only for the blind to use?

But Exclusive Road is different, emphasizing the road’s uniqueness without overly specifying which demographic it is for, avoiding any discriminatory connotations.

This proposal was quickly endorsed by the public, with many design companies offering their own visions of what Exclusive Road should look like. One such design quickly caught the attention of the government and the House of Representatives.

The importance of this special road is not to make it visible to sighted people, but to allow blind individuals to distinctly feel whether it is a special road.

Therefore, the construction of the special road must differ from ordinary roads, creating a clear tactile experience for the blind, focusing efforts underfoot.

Compared with the patterns on ordinary paving stones and roads, the texture of the special road would be distinct, easily felt underfoot.

Additionally, the color of the special road would differ from ordinary roads to remind people not to occupy it.

The proposal for the special road was passed by a majority in the House of Representatives and was included by the Transportation Department as a key road reconstruction project for 1922.

According to documents distributed by the Ministry of Transportation to various cities and states, it is evident that governments at all levels are working on one thing: accelerating the reconstruction of roads and increasing the number of blind lanes in urban construction to ensure the safe passage of blind individuals.

This also signifies that nearly all cities will need certain reconstructions, but no one has any complaints, as ensuring the interests of the disabled has become the most heated topic in Australasia at present.