World Con and accessibility (or lack thereof)

[sasha_feather]

As you probably know, I am one of a handful of people who run Access at WisCon. I've done this for a few years and learned a ton. Access initiatives at WisCon have largely been very successful and well-regarded.

Karen Moore recently went to WorldCon and was struck by the difference in the lack of accessibility there vs. at WisCon. She wrote us a letter to say so, and gave me permission to quote her letter in my blog. Excerpts from her letter follow:

----begin----

As difficult as it is to juggle 1,000 convention members through the Concourse Hotel’s [WisCon's event site] elevators, I have never seen a wheelchair or scooter user wait for 55 minutes to get onto an elevator at WisCon. I’ve seen that happen multiple times this weekend. It has never been necessary at WisCon to take one elevator to the ground floor, transfer to a second elevator to reach the below-ground floors, traverse a tunnel between two buildings to reach yet a third elevator in order to reach a different floor in the other building to go from one panel to the next. That is a frequent occurrence at WorldCon; in fact, one scooter user we spoke to had concluded that the best she could hope for was to be able to attend a panel in every other timeslot, because the lengthy waits at multiple elevators meant that it took her at least two full hours to navigate from one panel to the next one.

As much of a hurdle it was to move awareness of access into the forefront of people’s consciousness at WisCon, you achieved that very effectively, with announcements, signage, blue tape and multiple other means of communicating to the able-bodied that perhaps taking the stairs would not be a huge burden, and that it would be worthwhile to do so to free up elevator space for those who cannot move between floors in any other way. At WorldCon, there was nary a whisper of such messages, save for a brief blurb titled “Be Kind to your Wheel-Footed Friends” in the Saturday newsletter – and that was AFTER I buttonholed the con chair on Friday afternoon and gave him merry hell about it.

As challenging as it is to finagle a wheelchair/scooter parking spot in some of those oddly-shaped meeting rooms at the Concourse, you still manage to do so in every single one. There is absolutely NO awareness of the need for wheelie/scooter parking spaces at WorldCon. Wheelchair/scooter users are on their own to try to squeeze into space, move chairs around, and try to find a spot to settle.

And even though it is far from ideal for wheelchair/scooter users to have to use that little elevator to navigate the half-flight of stairs to reach the last two panel rooms on the first floor, at least there IS an elevator. There is at least one room in WorldCon’s venue that can ONLY be accessed if one can climb stairs, and they programmed events in that room in every single time slot of the entire con.

And finally, as much pushback as I know Access has gotten from within the committee over its mission, at least none of WisCon’s concom (that I know of) has ever seriously suggested developing an entire track of programming that doesn’t exist, located in a room that doesn’t exist, and then put the damn thing in the pocket program book, the online program and everywhere else. Evidently, someone in the WorldCon committee finds it immensely amusing to think of a convention member with no cartilage left in his hips struggling painfully down multiple escalators, across the tunnel, up more escalators, then searching through a maze of corridors for a program event, only to find a sign that essentially says “Ha, ha, gotcha, Sucker!” The con chair heard from me on that topic as well, by the way. His response? “Well, I’m sorry you don’t see the humor in it.”

-----end-------

WorldCon does have an accessibility department, but it sounds like it is not succeeding. It also sounds like, from this last paragraph, that the ConCom trolled its own membership.

I repost this here not to pick on WorldCon or to cause drama, but rather to say, here is a problem, at this covention and at others. What can we do to work on addressing this problem?

Initiatives at WisCon succeeded because of committed activists and allies. I suspect that each convention will need insiders on their con coms to bring initiatives forward-- that change will have to come from the inside.

At one convention that I won't name at present, I think that criticism around accessibility caused a very strong backlash, and that comparisons to WisCon only made the backlash worse. We were seen as condescending outsiders to their in group. My own perspective is that I have practical experience that I want to share, but, the criticism was not taken as constructive and relationships were damaged.

This is not my intention here. Better access improves things for everyone involved, and it is not as hard to implement as one might think.

Thoughts?

Comments

looking further ahead....

[(Anonymous)]

London doesn't mention much in the way of services either. I have moderately high hopes- because I think they are using facilites built for the Olympics (and Paralymics) but that's no guarantee.
https://www.loncon3.org/

Looking further out to Spokane Vs. Orlando (which will be voted on next summer),
One of the prime selling point of the Orlando site is accessibility (golf cart shuttles around an enclosed ground), they already have been thinking about fans with disabilities.
(Spokane looks pretty cool too, but I can see how "its all so walkable" raises red flags for people who have concerns about either mobility and wayfinding.

http://www.spokanein2015.org/wordpress/
http://www.orlandoin2015.org/

[tablesaw]

Just from comments, it's sounding like the con was held in Jareth's castle.

[kradical.livejournal.com]

Of course, one of the problems that will always be an issue is that WorldCon is in a different venue every year, and always in a venue that the committee is working with for the first (and last) time for that show. That makes it considerably more difficult to work out the kinks, or even know what all the kinks are. WisCon and Dragon*Con have had the advantage of using the same venue for years to make sure that all is well.

This is not to excuse anything, but WorldCons will always have more trouble dealing with those kinds of issues by the very nature of the con.

[fjm]

I use a pedometer because I actually have to walk for my disability. I was covering close to five miles a day and it was a lot more complicated than it needed to be. Too many routes involved secondary routes for chair users, rather than actually being accessible.

[fjm]

DragonCon was the worst convention I've ever attended for attitudes to the disabled.I saw someone pushed away (ie his chair pushed) from an elevator.

Re: looking further ahead....

[gehayi]

I just sent Spokane this message:

How will Spokane make getting around easier for those who use canes, crutches, walkers and wheelchairs? Are there ramps and elevators that will take disabled attendees to and from the walkways? Are there portions of the hotel that are only accessible by climbing stairs? Do you have more than enough elevators to compensate if one or more should be stalled between floors, should stick at a particular floor or should break down? Will the meeting rooms for panels have "parking space" set aside for wheelchairs and scooters? (Chicago's WorldCon didn't, which is why I ask.) Will there be places for people who must lug around awkward equipment, such as walkers, crutches and canes? And speaking of those who can walk but who have other needs--could Spokane provide skilled interpreters for the deaf? How about those who need and use service animals?

Also, I have to ask--how are you going to deal with practical "jokes"? Other WorldCons have featured fake program tracks, including fake directions on where to go and what room to be in at a given time? This might not seem like a big deal to those who are physically healthy, but to someone who has a limited store of energy, as many disabled people do, this is not only an annoyance but exhausting, debilitating and, in many cases, physically painful.

I ask all of this because "Spokane is very walkable" worries me, as does the fact that you don't mention any benefits for disabled attendees. As a disabled woman, this concerns me. This concerns me very much indeed.

***

I think that I need to send similar questions to San Antonio. What do you think?

Re: looking further ahead....

[fjm]

I've just had the disability issue for Loncon3 pointed out to me. If you go to Exhibits you will see that disability issues are explicitly addressed. I have no idea why we don't have the other stuff up and have written to the con chairs. Two of the ConCom have mobility impairments and one has a hearing impairment. We've been discussing it for ages and I'm incredibly embarrassed and apologetic that none of this has made it to the web page. This is why one should use critical readers before publishing.

Re: looking further ahead....

[(Anonymous)]

Thanks for the heads up. I am off the read the relevant portions of Exhibits page.

[paradoox]

There was really nothing they could have done about the multiple (three) elevators needed; at least I don't think there was. The builders could have made things much better by making the lower level elevators in the West Tower go up to level two. Then, I think it would have been possible to get between any two locations with "only" two elevators. But once the building were built ... And they couldn't not use one of the towers because that wouldn't have given them enough rooms. In a sense it is easier for a smaller convention in one venue. This Worldcon really should have been looked at as being in two hotels connected by a couple of walkways.

As to the joke program items, I think it was a Chicago "in" joke that fell very flat. Why they felt they need to do it in the first place, I don't know.

[(Anonymous)]

The point about WorldCon being in a different venue every year is germane - but in the case of ChiCon, the committee went back to the same hotel they used twelve years ago in 2000. From what I've seen of San Antonio's plans, their venue looks awfully similar to the one they used in 1997. Yes, it's a different city every year - but it sure seems to me that the cities who come up in the rotation every decade or decade and a half tend to go back to the same place again and again.

Granted, a city that has never landed a WorldCon before is charting new (to them) territory. They're figuring it all out as they go, and they can't possibly predict what problems may lurk in the elevators of their venue.

But the ChiCon committee knew EXACTLY what the kinks at the Hyatt were from their experience in 2000. And at least to this attendee, it sure seemed as though this time around, they collectively shrugged their shoulders and decided "aw, what the heck, it'll only affect maybe 5% of our members, that's not that big a deal."

[naomikritzer]

I'm able-bodied, but found myself assessing the access at the con a couple of times. (My original roommate was going to be Haddayr Copley-Woods, before she decided not to come, and she uses a wheelchair part time.) I compared it unfavorably to Wiscon, but VERY favorably to Convergence, which is the con local to me that's around the same size as WorldCon (they get about 6,000 people/year).

The fundamental problem is that when you want to accommodate 5,000 to 6,000 people, there's a limited number of hotel options. The Hyatt was at least designed for that many people, which gives it an advantage over the hotel Convergence is held at. (There simply AREN'T any hotels in the Twin Cities that are really big enough on their own for something like this.)

I would really like to come up with some elevator policies that basically say, "hey, if you're in an elevator going down and someone with a mobility problem needs to get on, people who can take the stairs need to GET OFF." The problem is that the elevator stops and opens only very briefly, and looking out, assessing people's mobility, and offering up one's spot is a pretty complex operation (not to mention, it doesn't do much for people whose disabilities aren't instantly visible). I mean, I could take the stairs, and did, at one point -- but coming down 22 floors left me with a pretty bad muscle strain (somewhat to my surprise) and it's not inherently unreasonable to want to take the elevator down even if you're not disabled.

I'm not sure how to solve this problem, but I would really like to -- not only for WorldCons, but for other cons with elevator crunches (which is to say, most cons).

[naomikritzer]

Also, I think I've said this in person, but I want to reiterate -- Wiscon was where I learned about the concept of Universal Design, and I found it a revolutionary way to approach not only access but a lot of other issues. (I wrote in my blog at some point about applying universal design principals to anti-bullying programs -- if you build a safe school for the QUILTBAG kids, it will also be safer for the kids who are straight and cis gendered but socially awkward or unfashionably dressed or in general out of step with the mainstream.)

I'm able-bodied and the universal design approach of Wiscon has significantly improved my con experience there. (THE TRAFFIC LANES ON THE PARTY FLOOR. OMG. <3 <3 <3 Even things like the way signs are posted to make it more efficient to find rooms are awesome. But it's the traffic lanes that really sum up for me the beauty of universal design, because _everyone_ loves them, even though lots of people have to be hounded occasionally to get them out of the traffic lane and into the parking lane.)

[azurelunatic]

One of my (TAB and Chicago-local) friends was there; she mentioned that the only panels she was actually interested in turned out to be the joke panels. She specifically mentioned the one on Superhero Genetics, moderated by Charles Xavier, in a room that was named similarly to other actual rooms but did not exist; she thought the joke was that there was going to be a surprise or cosplaying moderator, rather than the panel not existing.

[mariness]

And since 37 comments have failed to mention this so far, and this is a particular bugbear of mine --

To access the stage for the Hugo Awards, winners had to climb up three steps. Before the live feed came on, I saw at least three people have difficulty navigating the steps. And I did not see one visible ramp.

After I posted about this on Twitter and LJ, I was informed that oh, yes, yes, there was indeed a ramp. It was HIDDEN BEHIND A CURTAIN, so dark that able bodied people had to be guided down it and even with that there were difficulties, and was set up under the (probably correct) assumption that Hugo winners would be so delighted and out of it that they would fall off the stage if it wasn't there.

Why am I annoyed about this? Because the Nebulas went out of their way to provide a ramp. The Democratic National Convention has both stairs and a ramp to their stage (it's all back access; I saw this when the CNN cameras were following Obama and Clinton last night.) Hell, the Republican National Convention, which is definitely NOT going for the disability vote and as far as I know had no disabled speakers, HAD A RAMP. (I will credit Ann Romney's influence there.) So did the Oscars which, again, not the first event to come to mind when thinking disability friendliness.

This is, I realize, minor compared to the elevator and other issues. I really do get that. But the plain fact is that many authors and fans and editors and authors use mobility scooters and wheelchairs -- this is definitely not just me -- and a ramp should BE THERE ALL ALONG, not just thrown up if and when one of us is nominated for an award.

#

My experience with Dragoncon pre wheelchair was that it was the least disabled friendly space I'd seen in some time. I understand some aspects have been improved, in particular disabled seating and some issues with the Sheraton, but I ended up not going to Dragoncon this year because the Hyatt hotel is reportedly still very, very difficult to navigate if, like me, you can't use escalators :(

#

Er. Sorry for ranting all over your space. I will shut up now.

[feuervogel]

The Hyatt convention hotels I've been in (Regency Chicago and downtown Atlanta for D*C) are both two towers that connect only at certain floors, so you have to go up or down to get across and up. Very labyrinthine, yes... Though sometimes I think it's more like the Winchester Mystery House.

First Worldcon

[(Anonymous)]

I've never done a Worldcon before, and I was pretty annoyed at the lack of elevator staffing. Having seen at least two people with walkers get shoved aside and somebody on a scooter just being ignored--that's just so unacceptable you can't see acceptable from there. Con-goers were trying to do their best on the "Hey, let's make room here..." but some people are so damn oblivious and you can't physically haul them out of the elevator for being a dick. (Well, I can't.)

I do a number of cons, and year after year, con after con, the thing I really notice is "Do you have somebody from security manning the elevators? Why the hell not?" It can't fix a lot of these issues, but it makes life a lot easier.

Re: looking further ahead....

[feuervogel]

I've volunteered to help with the Spokane bid (because, as much as I love the idea of making WorldCons cheaper, being stuck on Disney property with extremely limited food choices if one doesn't have a car is very no in my book.)

One of the things I'd love to address with the committee, should I get to interact with them beyond "hey, I got X pre-support and Y friends at Z Con," is the accessibility issue. One hotel is directly attached to the convention center, and the others are a 5-minute slow walk, according to the person I talked to. (Which, I gotta say, is a lot closer than most of the food in Chicago.)

Knowing my luck, I'll get sucked in to actually help if they win the bid. If I do, I'll poke them a lot about accessibility issues.

Re: looking further ahead....

[feuervogel]

I don't know if this will assuage your concerns any, but the con is bidding for the convention center. It's got a hotel attached, and I'm not sure if there's any way they can give preference to PWD in booking that hotel over the ones across the street. (The two other hotels are across the river, which I'm told is a 5-minute slow walk from the CC.)

(I volunteered to help with the bid at WorldCon this weekend, so I'm not one of the people making the decisions. If they win and I'm suckered onto the concom, I'll do what I can to make sure that disability issues aren't ignored. The smallish steampunk con I help run in NC is very aware, though we were limited by the hotel.)

[sasha_feather]

Yeah, I would be interested in that panel too!

[sasha_feather]

You are welcome to talk as much as you like. :)

[sasha_feather]

This is a rant friendly space! And I totally agree with you re ramps for stages.

Re: First Worldcon

[feuervogel]

There was a hotel staffer outside the elevators on the second floor of the east tower during a lot of the day, and sometimes on the first floor. (I didn't go to the west tower often enough to assess their elevators.) But not always. And only on the main floors, not the room floors or the convention floors.

Which is better than Dragon*Con, but could still be improved mightily.

Re: looking further ahead....

[(Anonymous)]

and London just posted information for people with disabilities to their FB page as well.

I'd be interested to see if early questions can lead to better con organization and support for convention attendees with disabilities. Will it help if those questions are posed in the "bid stage" of Worldcon, where the conventions are both very interested in getting support, and it is early enough in the process to make some changes? There is only so much to be done about architecture, and venues have already been chosen by that stage, but it may help going forward for hotel search committees to think differently about the sites they choose in the future.
Selkiechick
(Openid doesn't like LJ today)

[dulcinbradbury]

I've never been to Wiscon. Could you explain the traffic lanes thing? I think I know what you mean, but, I'm not sure. (And if it's what I think it is, that's awesome.)

[dulcinbradbury]

I can tell you that there was a ramp somewhere for people to use who had mobility issues. That *is* something that they paid attention to. During the rehearsal, they walked every single nominee through how they would be able to get up on stage.