Am I thinking about accessibility wrong?
August 3, 2021 3:40 PM Subscribe
I got tickets for New York City's Homecoming Concert and mentioned it on Facebook. A friend commented that they would love to get tickets but wouldn't physically be able to make it through the entire concert. I suggested the ADA seating in case they didn't know that was an option. Was I off base?
I told them that I was planning to request the ADA seating option since I have arthritis in my knee and have been walking with a cane. They replied that while they weren't accusing me of this, their mother was a wheelchair user who used to not be able to attend events due to people using the ADA accomodations when they shouldn't and taking space away from her. So they wouldn't feel right using that as option even though they have a condition that causes pain.
My thinking has been that I also would not be able to make it through the entire concert standing. And that the point of providing accomodations is to allow people to attend who wouldn't be able to otherwise, so I would be using the system the way it was intended.
But now I am wondering if I should be worrying about taking space from someone who needs it even more. It is an option to sit on a blanket on the ground. It would be very uncomfortable during the concert and I would be very achy the next day. But maybe that isn't serious enough to justify using the ADA seating.
Would I be cheating the system by using it in my case? I am only in my late 40s and have not really ever considered myself "officially" disabled, so now I am wondering if I am not impaired enough to truly qualify. I really don't want to take something away from someone who needs it more.
Thank you for your thoughts!
I told them that I was planning to request the ADA seating option since I have arthritis in my knee and have been walking with a cane. They replied that while they weren't accusing me of this, their mother was a wheelchair user who used to not be able to attend events due to people using the ADA accomodations when they shouldn't and taking space away from her. So they wouldn't feel right using that as option even though they have a condition that causes pain.
My thinking has been that I also would not be able to make it through the entire concert standing. And that the point of providing accomodations is to allow people to attend who wouldn't be able to otherwise, so I would be using the system the way it was intended.
But now I am wondering if I should be worrying about taking space from someone who needs it even more. It is an option to sit on a blanket on the ground. It would be very uncomfortable during the concert and I would be very achy the next day. But maybe that isn't serious enough to justify using the ADA seating.
Would I be cheating the system by using it in my case? I am only in my late 40s and have not really ever considered myself "officially" disabled, so now I am wondering if I am not impaired enough to truly qualify. I really don't want to take something away from someone who needs it more.
Thank you for your thoughts!
Nope, those seats are for you. An ableist system has us fighting over scraps and that's NOT your fault. Your friend's perspective is understandable, but contrary to basically any disability justice movement's principles. Playing the "who has it worst" game is what the system uses to justify giving people as little as possible.
posted by brook horse at 3:45 PM on August 3, 2021 [90 favorites]
posted by brook horse at 3:45 PM on August 3, 2021 [90 favorites]
There's nothing "official" about disability accommodations in the world. The options are there for people who need assistance.
Yes, it is frustrating when people use spaces they don't need. But from the outside you can't judge that and shouldn't tell others what they need or don't. That is also a failure of the world not being accessible enough. But if you (or someone else) needs the accommodation, that is what it's there for.
Signed, a 31-year-old disabled woman who doesn't use mobility aids but also cannot stand at a concert.
posted by Crystalinne at 3:49 PM on August 3, 2021 [9 favorites]
Yes, it is frustrating when people use spaces they don't need. But from the outside you can't judge that and shouldn't tell others what they need or don't. That is also a failure of the world not being accessible enough. But if you (or someone else) needs the accommodation, that is what it's there for.
Signed, a 31-year-old disabled woman who doesn't use mobility aids but also cannot stand at a concert.
posted by Crystalinne at 3:49 PM on August 3, 2021 [9 favorites]
Also I wanted to add that I think it makes a difference that you said sitting on the ground would be uncomfortable. If you had said sitting on the ground would also be fine then I would have said then you should leave the seating for someone for whom it would not be fine. In this case that's you.
posted by bleep at 4:15 PM on August 3, 2021 [4 favorites]
posted by bleep at 4:15 PM on August 3, 2021 [4 favorites]
Would I be cheating the system by using it in my case?
No. I am a house manager for a small community music hall. We have ADA seating for anyone who requests it. In fact, I am routinely pleased to see that our ADA accommodations get so much use because it means people are coming out to shows. If all of our ADA seating was in use, we'd work pretty hard with people to try to find them accommodations that would work for them.
Obviously your friend is in a different headspace about this, and is making the decisions that work for them, but ADA accommodations are for everyone who requires them. If I were in their position I might actually lobby with the venue to add more accessible seating if their mother is routinely unable to use venues because the seats are full. It's possible also that this was something true historically which may not be true anymore. Again, your friend is welcome to make the decision that works for them--a decision that I would not make or would not want them to make as a venue manager--but to your main question I think it's totally okay for you to use the ADA seating, not even borderline, just a totally AOK situation.
posted by jessamyn at 4:25 PM on August 3, 2021 [23 favorites]
No. I am a house manager for a small community music hall. We have ADA seating for anyone who requests it. In fact, I am routinely pleased to see that our ADA accommodations get so much use because it means people are coming out to shows. If all of our ADA seating was in use, we'd work pretty hard with people to try to find them accommodations that would work for them.
Obviously your friend is in a different headspace about this, and is making the decisions that work for them, but ADA accommodations are for everyone who requires them. If I were in their position I might actually lobby with the venue to add more accessible seating if their mother is routinely unable to use venues because the seats are full. It's possible also that this was something true historically which may not be true anymore. Again, your friend is welcome to make the decision that works for them--a decision that I would not make or would not want them to make as a venue manager--but to your main question I think it's totally okay for you to use the ADA seating, not even borderline, just a totally AOK situation.
posted by jessamyn at 4:25 PM on August 3, 2021 [23 favorites]
If the ADA seats are full, your friend should be insisting that the venue create or find her additional accessible seating. Using this seating helps venues justify adding more seats, in fact. You should use the seating. Using these resources is a form of disability justice advocacy.
posted by shadygrove at 7:09 PM on August 3, 2021 [19 favorites]
posted by shadygrove at 7:09 PM on August 3, 2021 [19 favorites]
Also, I don't know how your friend's mother would know or be able to judge that the ADA seats were being used by people who shouldn't have used them. How on earth could she know that?
posted by shadygrove at 7:11 PM on August 3, 2021 [29 favorites]
posted by shadygrove at 7:11 PM on August 3, 2021 [29 favorites]
Please go with clear conscience. Clearly describe your needs, as there is a variety to what may constitute ADA seating. And if you or anyone else experiences that the venue denies access due solely to ability to accommodate a particular disability then raise a stink about that - especially if it is a pattern. It may be illegal, and it is definitely not okay.
posted by meinvt at 7:24 PM on August 3, 2021 [1 favorite]
posted by meinvt at 7:24 PM on August 3, 2021 [1 favorite]
Generally (there are probably exceptions) wheelchair seating in theaters doesn't actually have a seat installed, since the wheelchair user will be sitting in their wheelchair. I don't know what this specific venue is like.
Some venues have the ability to physically remove seating, even the kind of seating that attached to the floor, to create more wheelchair seating if it is needed.
posted by yohko at 9:28 PM on August 3, 2021 [3 favorites]
Some venues have the ability to physically remove seating, even the kind of seating that attached to the floor, to create more wheelchair seating if it is needed.
posted by yohko at 9:28 PM on August 3, 2021 [3 favorites]
This thread is closed to new comments.
posted by bleep at 3:44 PM on August 3, 2021 [25 favorites]