Our Building Has No Ramp — There Is Nothing We Can Do
Asserting your right to accessible public and commercial spaces under PEPUDA and the Constitution
Premiumintermediate7 minutes
The Situation
What They Said
“Our building has no ramp — there is nothing we can do.”
A person who uses a wheelchair or has a mobility impairment visited a government department, bank, or business to access a service they are entitled to. They were told the building has no wheelchair access — no ramp, no lift — and the institution expressed no intention to remedy the situation, essentially turning the person away.
The Fallacy
Structural Inconvenience Excuses Exclusion
A lack of accessible infrastructure is not a defence against a duty to provide access. South African law — particularly PEPUDA and the Constitution — prohibits unfair discrimination against people with disabilities, and reasonable accommodation of disability is an affirmative duty. The failure to provide ramps, accessible entrances, or equivalent services is itself a form of unfair discrimination.
What the Law Says
Your Legal Foundation
Promotion of Equality and Prevention of Unfair Discrimination Act 4 of 2000 (PEPUDA)
Section 9 — Prohibition of Unfair Discrimination on Grounds of Disability — Failure to Provide Reasonable Accommodation Is Discrimination
“No person may unfairly discriminate against any person on the grounds of disability, including the failure to take steps to reasonably accommodate the needs of such persons.”
The institution's failure to provide wheelchair access — or to offer you any equivalent means of accessing the same service — is unfair discrimination under PEPUDA. You have the right to report this to the South African Human Rights Commission (SAHRC) or approach the Equality Court for relief, including a court order compelling the institution to provide reasonable access.
Constitution of the Republic of South Africa, 1996
Section 9(3) — Equality — No Unfair Discrimination on Grounds of Disability
“The state may not unfairly discriminate directly or indirectly against anyone on one or more grounds in the Constitution, including disability.”
State institutions — government departments, public hospitals, courts, schools — have a higher duty to ensure physical accessibility. The Constitution makes disability discrimination by the state explicitly unlawful.
What Scripture Says
God's Word on This
Luke 14:13-14 (NET)
“But when you host a banquet, invite the poor, the crippled, the lame, and the blind, and you will be blessed, because they cannot repay you.”
Scripture specifically names the disabled as those who must be actively included, not passively excluded. Buildings and institutions that make no effort to be accessible passively exclude — and the law treats this as active discrimination.
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You Know the Law — But Do You Know What to Say?
Reading your rights is one thing. Using them under pressure — calmly, correctly, in the right words — is what actually protects you. Members get the scripted rebuttal for this exact situation: what to say first, what to say if they push back, the tone to use, and the constitutional provision to cite. Practise out loud with audio until it's automatic.
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What They'll Say Next
Common Counter-Arguments
After you respond, they may push back with these arguments. Members get the full rebuttal for each.
They might say: “We are a small business — we cannot afford a ramp.”
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They might say: “You should have called ahead — we could have arranged something.”
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Know Your Rights. Know Your Word.
149 South African rights scenarios — exact rebuttals, constitutional law, and Scripture. Practise out loud with audio. Free to start with 2 full domains.