-----Original Message----- From: - Joy - [mailto:[log in to unmask]] Sent: Monday, March 20, 2000 10:29 PM To: [log in to unmask] Subject: Hecht's I've recently had a really bad experience with Hecht's (a big department store in the US), and I'm wondering if anyone's gone through similar things. Plus, I'm just looking to vent. I was trying on a few suits for a mock trial match I had coming up, and my dad had entered the dressing room to help me with dressing. We made sure there was no one else in the room, and locked the door to our stall. A saleswoman came in, and started yelling that he had to leave. He didn't want to embarrass me by mentioning my disability in front of the shoppers (since the door was open now, everyone could hear). He just said he was helping his daughter. The woman kept knocking on the door until we came out, but when she saw me wouldn't say anything. He was angry now, and asked if she was the one yelling, and what she wanted. She petted me on the head, in front of everyone, and said "I'm sorry baby, I didn't know you were crippled." Now, it had been a stressful week - I had exams, this match coming up, and my clothes weren't fitting like I wanted. That was just the last straw... I'm sorry to say that I started sobbing, and couldn't stop. And of course, the more I cried, the more embarrassed I was, which made me cry harder. Now, I'm a daddy's girl, and my dad hates to see me upset. So, we stormed to the manager's office, and asked to see her. She tried to be sympathetic, but that didn't make it any less painful to be treated that way. We were also upset that I had been unable to dress on my own, since the room was too small for me to pivot and face the mirror, and there was food in the dressing room. Plus, because of the way the racks were cramped so tightly together, I couldn't see everything. She tried to say that I could ask a manager to get something for me, but if I can't see it, how can I know what to ask for? And how am I supposed to get to a manager? She promised to have their ADA consultant call us immediately. It's been three weeks, and I just got a basic apology today. Ugh!!! Has anyone had similar experiences? Am I overreacting? ~Joy~ [log in to unmask] http://www.geocities.com/joy0823 "Never underestimate the power of stupid people in large groups."