[identity profile] glasscannon.livejournal.com posting in [community profile] dragoncon_lj_archive
After running across a couple of frankly horrifying stories of people attempting to deal with Disability Services for this year's Con, I thought it was time to reach out to the broader community and see if this is a trend that other people have noticed, or if it's just a few isolated incidents that could be resolved by having the bright light of the community shined on them.

As a bit of background, I live with several invisible illnesses that have progressed over the last decade to the point where I am no longer able to work, need help with household chores, etc.  This is the first year I'll be using Disability Services at DragonCon, after years of making-do at Con, skipping large events, and trying to get by on the life adjustments I use to cope at home.  And last year I missed almost all of Sunday because of it, so this year I'm forcing myself to suck up my pride and plan to make Disability Services my first stop when I get to DragonCon.

Knowing that I'm going to be using DS for the first time this year, I've kept an eye out for mentions of it online.  First I ran across this worrying story of an attendee whose father has been hospitalized for diabetes being told that Disability Services can't do anything for him, as hospitalization-level diabetes isn't a "real" disability, and they aren't there to make anyone comfortable.  Next I happened to meet someone on Tumblr who is chronically ill to the point of needing assistance to be able to manage the con, but has been told that her assistant's first-time-going-to-a-con girlfriend is on her own as DS can't allow two companions to sit with a woman who needs assistance -- and told again, this time by the DS director. 

Then I worked my way through the Disability Services wiki and found myself scratching my head at the tone.  This is a department whose sole purpose is to provide help and services to those who would otherwise be prevented from going to DragonCon, but there's more in there about all the things that DS can't or won't do to help you.  Some sections, like the bits about being your own advocate and the frequent admonisions to arrive early (which, of course, is just so easy for anyone dealing with a disability at DragonCon) are flat out rude, and seem to willfully ignore the social and emotional barriers many people dealing with long-term illness and disability often face on top of the physical barriers (ie, sometimes being forced to discuss your illness/disability with a total stranger is as detremental as being forced to climb that flight of stairs).  There's a tone of "stupid you for getting sick and/or injured, now you're stuck with whatever scraps we feel like throwing your way, be thankful you get anything at all" that seems to me to leap out from every page.

I get that Disability Services needs to have rules in place to make sure people aren't abusing accommodations they don't genuinely need.  I get that anyone who uses DS needs to be their own advocate -- but trust me when I say that anyone who has gotten to the point of needing Disability Services is more than familiar with the trying, tiring, soul-destroying, never-ending task of being one's own advocate.  What I don't understand is the attitude.  What I don't understand is saying that a man who has been hospitalized for diabetes doesn't qualify for a teeny tiny sticker that would make an event he paid to attend marginally less painful.  What I don't understand is the complete and utter inflexibility to allow even one extra companion, on a case by case basis.  What are they going to do when a disabled woman wants to keep both her husband and their child with her in line?  What are they going to do when someone they could have helped but turned away passes out in line and seriously complicates an already life-altering illness?

Guys, help me out here?  Are these a few isolated incidents that need to be escalated up the chain of command?  Or is the attitude and tone I've witnessed again and again any time I run across Disability Services the attitude and tone I should expect to greet me at my first stop at DragonCon?  And if that's the case, what can be done to fix it?

Date: 2012-08-23 12:19 am (UTC)
From: [identity profile] whiteladyeowyn.livejournal.com
Well, did anyone ever tell you that you cannot have a chair in line? I have seen a ton of people using chairs in lines, with no stickers whatsoever. They just have a chair (or find one) and they use it. don't think I've seen anyone take that away from them.

I know tons of people that have used DS. I will be using them this year, because I need them (do I meet the legal requirements for disability? Nope. I got run over by a car, though, and will be wheelchair bound. But I am not legally disabled).

I have never, never, never seen ANYONE in DS tell a con-goer "you're faking it". They have to ask questions, to help determine your needs, and to see if any of your needs are things that they can help with. They cannot fix everything, cannot help with everything. But they will try their hardest. And as the DS person said in another response, they do alter things when they can.

Date: 2012-08-24 10:53 pm (UTC)
From: [identity profile] sylphon.livejournal.com
For what it's worth, I've lived it and am very familiar with the shame. DragonCon disability services have never made me feel shame of any sort for using their services. They have always been very courteous and helpful. I find them extremely helpful when it comes to registration and in past years they have helped me by providing chairs while waiting for large panels.

I realize the tone seems off with some of their responses and the wiki, but legally they're in a bind. If they state something that gets taken wrongly, they can be held over a barrel. So they have to fall back on standardization. It's hard, especially on newly 'disabled' people, since it can come off as gruff, but eventually the skin does thicken and you realize it's just the way a world trying to stay out of legal woes.

Date: 2012-08-23 12:26 am (UTC)
From: [identity profile] whiteladyeowyn.livejournal.com
And I read the thread on cosplay.com. The person probably got the cut and paste reply from the webpage, about 'not being able to make everyone comfortable'. Because that is true. They cannot do that, just not physically possible.

We have NO IDEA what she said in the email to DS. If all she said is, "He has diabetes, what can you do for him", there was no response they could have given. Many people have diabetes, and it is a multi leveled disease. Nowhere in her post does it say what she did or did not submit in her email.

Now, if she said, "He cannot stand in the heat/for long periods of time", and got that response? Then yeah, that may be a Nazgul of a different color. But the way her post is worded, we have no idea what she asked DS. So we have no way of judging their response.

Profile

dragoncon_lj_archive: (Default)
Dragoncon Livejournal Community Archive

April 2017

S M T W T F S
      1
2345 678
9101112131415
16171819202122
23242526272829
30      

Most Popular Tags

Style Credit

Expand Cut Tags

No cut tags
Page generated Jul. 10th, 2025 09:10 am
Powered by Dreamwidth Studios