THERE was an outpouring of outrage on local social media at the weekend after a father and son were falsely accused of abusing their disability parking badge in Enniskillen.
The family had displayed their blue badge, which belonged to the teenage son, while in a car park in Enniskillen. They were left shocked when they returned to their vehicle to a note stating “shame on your abuse of a disability badge” stuck on their windscreen.
The boy’s mother, who wished to remain anonymous to protect her son, told the Herald her family felt “hurt” by the note.
“If only that person would have seen what we’ve gone through for the past 14 years to get our son to the place where he is now,” fumed the frustrated mother.
“All of the difficulties of the early years, the therapies and treatments we’ve been through. If they would have walked in our shoes through those years, they would have been totally shamed with the note.”
The Fermanagh mother shared the incident on the Enniskillen Banter Facebook Group in a bid to educate people that “not all disabilities are visible.”
“The only reason I posted it was to educate and hope that the person who had left the note would see it and think again before they hurt another family,” she said.
Local residents were left fuming following the incident, with over 100 people taking to social media to show their support for the devastated family.
“You don’t have to explain yourself. If they have time to watch who’s getting out of cars and then writing a note to them, they must live a pretty boring life,” one resident said.
Another resident said: “[It’s] sad that people assume they know it all about disabled people. It’s not until you walk in a disabled person’s shoes you see the daily struggles we face and attitudes towards us.”
This isn’t the first time that a person in Enniskillen has received criticism for their use of a disabled blue badge.
The Herald previously reported that a disabled badge-holding motorist from Cork received a parking notice and fine, even though they were parked in a suitable spot at the Buttermarket.
A furious Fermanagh resident who saw the parking ticket on the car contacted the Herald to share their annoyance at the way the driver, who had ‘parked in good faith’, had been treated.
“Disgracefully one of those red coats had slapped a ticket on their car. The more I thought about it, the more incensed I became,” fumed the Fermanagh person.
“Is this the embarrassingly unwelcoming image that Enniskillen wants to portray to the world? This really leaves a negative impression with visitors to the county.”
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