I had a similar situation a few years ago (pre-covid) when walking my very elderly, 14 year old (yes, it was a bit of a miracle), King Carles Spaniel. She was on a short lead and not so much walking as shuffling along at a painfully slow pace, keeping as close to my legs as possible. I know this sounds like she was in discomfort but I promise you she was happy and these walks/shuffles were the best part of her day. She was tiny, even for a KCS and happy snuffling along the country path beside me. For context, this path is wide enought to frequently accommodate horses wriding four-abreast.
Anyway, we were wandering along on one side of the pathway - I always stayed well to the side because we were so slow and didn't want to get in others' way - when a bloke with two young kids appeared, walking in the other direction. The kids started screaming that there was a dog and the father strode up towards me with his hand outstretched telling me to keep that dog away from his kids. I was very pleasant and polite, agreeing that of course, he had no need to worry.
"it needs to be on a lead", he said. So, slightly puzzled, I showed him the very obvious lead in my hand and assured hm I had no intention of letting her loose as well as pointing out the ample amount of space availble for us to pass each other. He kept yelling at me that "if that thing attacks my kids, I'll see you in jail" - fair enough but there has honestly never been a less threatening dog in existence and I did wonder how they would cope with an exubriant labrador on the path.
I offered to wait at the side until they had passed but he kept yelling that he wasn't taking his kids anywhere near an out of control dog. By this point, because we had stopped for so long, DDog had yawned and lain down on the path for a snooze. She had never been reactive to loud noises so the yelling from the bloke and screaming from the kids didn't bother her. I ended up picking her up and walking on with her in my arms, while the bloke continued to yell at me for having a dangerous dog.
I do understand and sympathise with thise who have phobias. I have a couple of debilitating phobias myself (not animal related) so always try to put myself in the shoes of others when I see they are uncomfrotable and will do what I can to make things easier. One of my close friends doesn't like dogs and I'd always ensure our dog is shut away upstairs when she visits - this is reasonable. Likewise, I always walks dogs on leads other than in designated of-lead parks and beaches. When I see someone is uncomfortable, I'll ensure the dog is kept as far away from them and as close to me as possible. I also understand that people who have not grown up around dogs and have no interest in them are unlikely to know breeds and probably couldn't tell a labrador from a malamut. That's fine - there's no onus on them to know that. What I do think is reasonable though is that people are able toa ssess a situation and understand that not all dogs are dangerous, not all owners are bloodthirsty or irresponsible and to find coping strategies, whatever that might mean for an individual. We are a nation of dog lovers and they are not going to disappear from society.