Date: Fri 06-Jun-1997

Publication: Bee

Author: KAAREN

Quick Words:

Mims-disability-Friendly's

Full Text:

Local Couple Have Mixed Reaction To Federal Disability Ruling

When the Friendly's family restaurant chain agreed in a recent settlement with

the Justice Department to make it easier for disabled people to eat at its 704

restaurants, Bruce and Rosine Mims were pleased but a little disappointed.

The Newtown residents had filed a complaint with the Justice Department's

civil rights division in April 1993, alleging that the assistant manager of a

Friendly's restaurant in Cromwell refused to write answers in reply to Mrs

Mims' questions about their luncheon bill. Rosine Mims is severely hearing

impaired.

"Friendly's has settled with the Department of Justice by paying a $50,000

fine and agreeing to revamp 704 of its restaurant within six years," Mr Mims

said. "Retail stores generally just ignore the Americans With Disabilities

Act. This is a big breakthrough."

Ironically, however, the terms of the agreement won't help Rosine Mims. The

modifications which Friendly's agreed to will assist the blind and the

physically disabled. One provision requires Friendly's staff to "read menus to

blind people or give them audio versions of menus."

"The hearing disabled do not exist in this agreement (yet) there are 28

million hearing disabled, about 57 percent of all the disabled Americans," Mr

Mims said.

Mr Mims said that three years after he and his wife filed their complaint with

the Department of Justice, the federal agency notified them that it had

decided not to take action on the complaint. "(But) this does not constitute

an interpretation of whether a violation of the ADA occurred," Sharon Perley,

an attorney with the Justice Department, wrote in a letter to Mr and Mrs Mims

on July 25, 1996.

"It's ironic that in its investigation of Friendly's, the Department of

Justice acknowledged that it had been receiving complaints for several years

and said there's a pattern of discrimination," Mr Mims said. "Yet the

agreement doesn't say one word about persons with a hearing impediment."

Still, Bruce and Rosine Mims believe the Justice Department's ruling was

important.

"Despite ignoring the major disabled group, the agreement will have tremendous

impact," they said. "It is a wake-up call to all restaurants, and to retailers

as well. All are public accommodations under Title III of the law."

Rosine and Bruce Mims are members of the Persons with Disabilities Committee

of Newtown.