Disability Group Slams Kylie Jenner and Travis Scott for Seemingly Parking in Accessible Spot
Kylie Jenner‘s latest Instagram photo with Travis Scott has landed her in trouble with a leading disability organization.
On Sunday, Jenner, 21, posted a picture of the couple posing by one of their cars in what appears to be an underground parking lot. A sign indicating a disability accessible parking spot can be seen behind them. And on Monday evening, disability inclusion group The Ruderman Family Foundation condemned the photo.
“Accessible parking is meant for people with disabilities who need it,” said Jay Ruderman, the foundation’s president, in a statement obtained by PEOPLE. “As a role model to many, this is an opportunity for Kylie Jenner to use her celebrity status to help society understand why accessible parking is a basic right for people with disabilities to be included in daily life.”
The Instagram had also prompted outrage in the comments section. (Note that some used the term “handicap” or “handicapped,” which is no longer in use.)
“@kyliejenner what gives you the right to park in a handy cap your [sic] just out of line that’s for disabled people,” added another.
“As accessibility advocate I am disappointed you appear to be parked in front of accessibility parking spaces,” someone said.
“Are we ignoring the fact that they’re parked in handicap,” another person observed. “Or maybe it’s just the angle.”
“I guess celebrities can park wherever they want?” another follower wrote.
A rep for Jenner did not immediately return PEOPLE’s request for comment.
partners in crime 4 evaaa??????????????
A post shared by Kylie ? (@kyliejenner) on Jul 21, 2019 at 2:16pm PDT
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Jenner has faced criticism from disability advocates before. In 2015, she came under fire for posing in a wheelchair for an Interview magazine spread.
“It’s disappointing to see people fall back on the tired and totally untrue idea that being in a wheelchair is limiting,” Ian Ruder, senior editor of New Mobility, the member publication of United Spinal Association, told PEOPLE at the time. “I think most wheelchair users, myself included, would tell you that our wheelchairs are empowering and enable us to fully live our lives.”
As someone in a wheelchair @KylieJenner @InterviewMag, this is offensive. My chair is not haute couture. pic.twitter.com/y3sBaiJzIH
— Jessica Jewett Jones (@JJ9828) December 1, 2015
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In a statement at the time, Interview said the shoot played with ideas of power and subjectivity, and that it was not intended to be offensive.
“At Interview, we are proud of our tradition of working with great artists and empowering them to realize their distinct and often bold visions,” a spokesperson for the magazine said. “The Kylie Jenner cover by Steven Klein, which references the British artist Allen Jones, is a part of this tradition, placing Kylie in a variety of positions of power and control and exploring her image as an object of vast media scrutiny.”
“Throughout the Art Issue, we celebrate a variety of women who are both the creators and subjects of their artistic work, and the Kylie feature aims to unpack Kylie’s status as both engineer of her image and object of attention,” the statement continued. “Our intention was to create a powerful set of pictures that get people thinking about image and creative expression, including the set with the wheelchair, but our intention was certainly not to offend anyone.”