P.E.I. disabilities group to hold protest over parking space abuses

TheP.E.I. Council of People with Disabilities will be holding a peaceful protestin the Sobeys parking lot in Stratford, to remind people to respect designated parking spaces.

On Sunday, demonstratorswill place wheelchairs and walkers in non-designated parking spaceswith signs depicting typical excuses like "I'll only be a minute" or "I'm just running in for coffee."

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"All those reasons that people use they're not legitimate reasons," says MarciaCarroll, executive director of the council. "You use a designated spot because you need to use a designated spot."

'It's not a privilege, it's a right'

Carroll said the protest is designed to have people stop and think about how they would feel if their parking spots were taken and to build awareness around why these spots are reserved.

The council receives calls about people abusing designated parking spots daily and thatthe protest should be an eye-opener for people, she said.

"The abuse is multi-leveled and quite vast, but we try to deal with it the best we can," she said.

"People park in those spots because if they have to park farther away, they can cause significant damage to themselves. That's what people don't understand. It's not a privilege, it's a right."

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