Concert prohibited for disabled peoplewe mean the performance of the American pop star scheduled for July next year Taylor Swift in Milan (140,000 tickets sold): after a petition filed by a girl in a wheelchair. minister Alessandra Locatelli decided to intervene by calling a technical table. (Check out the latest news on disability and Law 104, protected categories, employment law, subsidies, job offers and active competitions. Read them for free on WhatsApp, Telegram and Facebook).
A disabled person was denied a concert: the case
Taylor Swift Concert planned for July 2024 in Milan, has once again drawn attention to the issue of accessibility of events for people with disabilities.
The wheelchair-bound 35-year-old denounced the exclusion from one of next year’s most anticipated musical events, exposing a problem that the Italian concert world has been repeating for far too long: limited availability for people with disabilities.
Speaking of accessibility, see which cities in Europe are the most accessible for people with disabilities.
Contacting the organizers
Silvia Stoyanova35-year-old girl, therefore, declared the impossibility of access to Taylor Swift concert. Cause? Several places reserved for people with reduced mobility are sold out. There are only 110 seats. This situation makes the feeling of being considered second-class citizens even more concrete.
Reaction of Minister Alessandra Locatelli
Minister of Disability Alessandra Locatelliintervened on this issue on her Facebook page, emphasizing that “attending a concert, watching a show and having fun is everyone is right“. He also promised to convene a working table to discuss the issue with a view to improve accessibility at concerts.
The Importance of Providing an Inclusive Experience
The minister’s speech followed that of Lisa Noha, a former deputy and member of the regional council of Lombardy, who stressed the importance of guaranteeing everyone, without distinction, the opportunity live the concert to the fullest.
Between standards and security and security
The essence of the problem concerns not artists or organizers, but safety regulations and the territorial commission, which determines the number of places for people with disabilities. Under the current rules, people with disabilities often find themselves in a difficult situation. inappropriate places, as evidenced by the case at the Arena di Verona. Or even if there are too few tickets.
Therefore, it is necessary to find a balance between providing full use live events for people with disabilities and insure them maximum security. The issue will also be discussed in the Milan City Council: there is a proposal to convert places for the disabled into San Siro Stadium.
Facebook page “Me too under the stage”
The “Under the Stage Too” Facebook page compiles testimonials and photos that show the difficulty of the spaces reserved for people with disabilities, often inadequate and uncomfortable. But that’s not all: there is also the issue of security, some episodes of which cause a lot of bewilderment.
Join the community, get informed and ask your questions on YouTube and Instagram.
How the rules work
But as the rules to purchase tickets for people with disabilities? According to the Viva Ticket website and the page of the Emilia-Romagna region, free or conditional access to events for people with disabilities is a solution to to the organizing body the event itself. This means that the solution varies from event to event.
- There is no single law: The choice is up to the organizer.
- Accredited in advance: For many events, please contact the organizers in advance.
Access to concerts: how it works
disabled people’s organizations They have raised this issue many times, but at the moment there is no clear law on tickets for the disabled and their companions.
The decision of free, discounted or full access is often, as we have seen, left to the show’s promoters. That is, those who risk their investments in the implementation of the event.
While the law states that a certain percentage of seats must be accessible to people with disabilities, it says nothing about free or discounted rates for them or their guardians.
Charles Jacobinian expert in the field of law and disability, noted that no standard which obliges show managers to guarantee free admission to people with disabilities. Any discount or free access is the choice of managers. However, there is a clear demand for a law on the accessibility of performance spaces.
reserved seats: current legislature
The current law will provide 0.5% reserve places for the disabled. Many disability organizations consider this reserve insufficient (but it was not even approached at the Taylor Swift concert in Milan).
Moreover, while guaranteeing accessible seats, the law does not provide for a free or reduced ticket for persons with disabilities or their companions. This raises concerns about equal access to cultural life for people with disabilities.
Petition of Silvia Stoyanova
The voice of the disabled person in this case did not go unanswered. Silvia Stoyanova assembled in just a week more than 36 thousand signatures with a petition created on Change.org.
Sylvia notes, among other things, that before 2000 places reserved for the disabled were in the front row. These positions were considered safe and useful. Since then, however, these locations have been pushed further and further away, often to awkward locations or with limited visibility. Cause? Many of these front row seats are now being sold as VIP packages at very high prices.
But this is not the case everywhere. In America, Japan and other European countries, people with disabilities have more rights and choice of seats at the concert.
FAQ (questions and answers)
Why was a disabled girl denied a ticket to a Taylor Swift concert?
Taylor Swift’s concert in Milan had only 110 seats reserved for people with disabilities, which quickly sold out. Silvia Stoyanova, a 35-year-old woman in a wheelchair, denounced the minimal and non-transparent allocation of these spaces.
How to bring a disabled person to a concert?
The need to pre-register or obtain accreditation from the organizers is emphasized, since places are limited and conditional.
What does Minister Locatelli intend to do?
Disability Minister Alessandra Locatelli announced her intention to convene a working table in September to discuss in depth the issue of concert accessibility. The goal is for everyone to have more fun participating in music and entertainment activities.
How is the girl doing with her disability claim?
Silvia Stoyanova’s petition gathered more than 36,000 signatures in a week asking for more seats for people with disabilities at concerts.
What are the rules for accessing people with disabilities to concerts in Italy?
Currently, the law provides for a reserve of 0.5% of places in entertainment establishments that must be accessible to the disabled. However, the management of tickets for people with disabilities and/or their companions is left to the discretion of the organizers in the absence of special rules. In many cases, the organizers offer free or reduced admission for people with disabilities and their companions. However, many people with disabilities complain about inadequate viewing spaces, such as seats behind the pylons or seats away from the stage, separated from non-disabled friends.
Conclusion
To sum up, the issue of accessibility of concerts in Italy for people with disabilities is an issue that periodically pops up in the public eye and requires concerted thought and action on the part of organizers, authorities and artists.
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