[blindlaw] Guide dog access question

pattischang at gmail.com pattischang at gmail.com
Sat Sep 19 10:34:22 UTC 2015


I would just show up.


Live the life you want.  Every day we raise the expectations of blind  people in the National Federation of the Blind.

Patti S. Gregory-Chang
NFBI Treasurer
NFB Scholarship Comm. Chair
Sent from my iPhone

On Sep 18, 2015, at 7:04 PM, Andrew Webb via blindlaw <blindlaw at nfbnet.org> wrote:

Dear List,



I'm a guide dog user, and I'm running up against an access issue. I wonder
if anyone can give me some guidance. The facts in brief:



-          Tomorrow I am to attend a circus performance. I won't name names,
but it's a well-known operation with a French name that commonly stages
performances under a big tent top.

-          I'm going with a group of several people. I didn't purchase the
tickets myself, I was invited to join after the purchase was made.

-          After this invitation, I called the circus headquarters,
explained that I'd be coming with a guide dog, and due to legroom concerns(I
am tall)  asked if I could be moved to an accessible seat, on account of the
dog.

-          After researching it, the circus company called to say that the
performance (and all remaining performances at the venue) are completely
sold out, and that there simply were no other seats to which I could be
moved, including accessible seats. I have no doubt that this is true, given
the show's reputation and popularity.

-          I said that this wasn't a problem, that my group and I could
remain in the seats we purchased and we'd fit the dog in under our seats,
that I've done such before. The company responded that the back couple rows
in the venue (in which our seats happen to be - we're in the nosebleeds) are
tighter than the other rows in terms of legroom, and thus that it is not
their "standard practice" to have service dogs in those seats. I said that I
appreciated the notice, but that there would be a couple small kids in our
group whose legs don't even touch the floor, so if nothing else there would
be no problem parking the dog in front of the kids.

-          They reiterated that this is not their "standard practice," and
said that they were concerned about their liability if the dog were to be
injured due to the tight conditions.



They have no other alternative to offer me. They have not yet given me a
flat "no," but are treating my situation as a "request," which they are
forwarding on to management, and somebody is supposed to call me again with
a final answer tomorrow prior to the show.  I tried explaining that to
refuse me this access is illegal under American law, and that they cannot
deny me simply because of their company's "standard practice." The
representative didn't seem to be getting this.  Part of the problem may be
that these people I'm speaking with are not in the US, and it seems that to
a person they all speak French and are not completely fluent in English,
i.e., there's a bit of a language barrier, i.e., trying to explain my rights
under the ADA if pretty futile. All the representatives have been completely
polite, but they're not getting the point on this access thing.



Hopefully when they call me tomorrow morning, they'll just say there's no
problem, come on down with your dog and enjoy the show, and that will be the
end of it.  But what do I do if they say no? Do they have any right to deny
me, based on the circumstances I've described?  If they say no, and they
have no legal grounds, how should I handle it? The best thing I can think of
is to show up anyway, presumably be denied entrance, and then call the
police for assistance. 



All information and suggestion are appreciated. By the way, I  would
ordinarily call our city's Human Rights Commission, but of course they won't
be open Saturday and thus wouldn't be able to help me in time.



Thanks,

Andrew

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