Netizens Are Disappointed With A Local Restaurant's Insensitive 'Wheelchair' Poster
The poster featured a picture of a wheelchair and the words, "Help them walk again".
By May Vin Ang — 22 Jun 2020, 06:41 PM
A local restaurant chain came under fire over the weekend for a poster they published on their Facebook page
Uploaded on Friday, 19 June, the restaurant encouraged followers to support their business by offering a 20% discount on all takeaways or dine-ins during the weekend at their Bangsar South and Jaya 33 outlets.
"Help [them] stand on their feet again. The COVID-19 outbreak has broken many of us. [They] are no exception," the restaurant wrote about themselves while featuring a picture of a wheelchair.
"Help them walk again, they will remove 20% off your entire bill this weekend for dine-in and takeaway."
Looking past the discount, netizens remarked that the poster was actually made in poor taste
Several questioned the use of the image of a wheelchair and the language used to describe the restaurant's situation in the advertisement.
Many others joined in to ask the restaurant to take down the post.
The Facebooks users pointed out that the poster was insensitive and ableist in nature, regardless of the restaurant's intentions
As quoted from The Star, ableism is the active or passive prejudice directed at people with physical or mental disabilities.
The netizens were pointing out that the use of the image of a wheelchair and the word 'broken' in the poster reinforces the assumption that people with disabilities are inferior or are of lesser value than other human beings.
While it may seem slight, these everyday put-downs and insults perpetuate the discrimination and stereotypes against them.
