With the Coachella Music and Arts Festival kicking off the festival season and more events around the corner, event-goers should take into consideration a movement that has started seeking to make music festival ticket purchases trouble-free for the deaf and disabled.
The Attitude is Everything charity has started an initiative and coalition with other organizations called “Ticketing Without Barriers.”
This proposal addresses the issues that arise for people with disabilities when trying to purchase tickets to a music event.
Attitude is Everything, a UK based organization, released their 2018 State of Access Report stating, “deaf and disabled music fans need a simple and universal system for evidencing access requirements, accurate and disability-aware information and customer service.”
Attitude is Everything also focuses on the choice and flexibility that people with disabilities have when purchasing tickets and overall makes sure access requirements are met by the venues and ticket companies.
Productions such as The Movement Festival, F—Yeah Festival (FYF) and Coachella, just to name a few, are marketed for people of all ages, shapes, and shades to attend. Other festivals such as Electric Daisy Carnival (EDC) and other Insomniac events do have age restrictions but are marketed as an experience that everybody should have. The only thing is that the majority of the people having that experience is made up of people with no need for special accommodations.
Attitude is Everything surveyed 349 people that included 293 deaf and disabled participants and 56 people who book access and on behalf of the deaf and disabled. The survey reported that four out of five people with disabilities experienced problems booking accommodation and that 79 percent have been put off buying tickets for a concert due to issues in arranging accommodation for a concert–goer.
Adrian Oviedo, a CSUSB student and regular concert-goer who is disabled, has experienced issues that Attitude is Everything is addressing with their industry-wide “Ticketing Without Barriers” initiative.
He has bought pit tickets to a concert in the past and was denied access to the area he specifically paid for due to hazardous issues.
Adrian says, “I had bought pit tickets, but they told me, ‘Oh no you cant’ go down there cause it’s a fire hazard’. I asked them, well where can you put me?” Adrian was placed in the area that cost less for admission.
“For me, it was that I spent almost $200 on tickets where I could’ve spent $150 or less.”
Adrian feels that “venues or the promoters should put on their websites, If you are in a wheelchair, we don’t recommend you going to the pit cause they won’t let you in there.”
Adrian has also missed out on tickets to a HIM concert, one of his favorite bands, because of the late response by the ticket company’s customer service department.
Adrian was thinking ahead of time to avoid any issues in obtaining a ticket and proper accommodation.
“I sent an email like an hour before they went on sale and like they got back to me in 2 hours saying ‘We don’t have any more tickets, we do apologize, is there anything we can do for you?’”
With the “Ticketing Without Barriers” coalition in full effect, issues like the one Adrian has experienced will be avoided by making sure proper accommodations are met and the equal opportunity in obtaining tickets to the events is insured.
Attitude is Everything is based out of the UK but has gotten the support from companies such as Ticketmaster, See Tickets, Live Nation and more. These companies are ones that concert attendees use to purchase tickets for concerts held in the Inland Empire.
With growing support towards this initiative, music fans in the Inland Empire can take part in this coalition by informing themselves in the barriers the deaf and disabled experience when trying to attend a concert.
For more information on the coalition and the 2018 State Access Report, visit attitudeiseverything.org.uk
Leave a Reply