This week a photo and commentary was shared on social media by a customer regarding another customer with a disability. As the information quickly spread around social media, the message changed multiple times and has turned into a campaign of misinformation. Without a doubt, the initial impression this gives is unacceptable. We take matters of this nature very seriously. The information portrayed was simply not accurate and not inline with our company values. As we have always done, before making any decisions or issuing any type of statement, we contact all parties involved so we can: a.) understand the situation and b.) take steps to ensure it does not happen again.
Our team spoke with the guest over the weekend and it was determined that there was a miscommunication between her and our security staff regarding her wheelchair location in front of the barricade. It’s important to mention that we provide ADA access at all of our shows. This seemed to stem from a safety issue, and while communicated poorly by our team, the end result was to offer further accommodations to help a guest. In this instance, as confirmed by the guest in a recent Facebook post, HI-FI staff did not force her to sit on the ground. Accountability has always been an important part of our company’s culture. While we’ve determined this is a misunderstanding, we are clearly at fault in our communication efforts and know this could have been avoided with better training. We’ve already started sorting out a plan for future shows.
The guest in the photo is a great customer, frequently comes to shows here and someone we hold in high regard. The guest is planning on attending shows in the future. We appreciate her efforts to clarify the situation and want to ensure she feels comfortable attending future shows.