This got long, but hang in there because the end is really great.
When I was at MNSSHP in October, I tried to go on the Haunted Mansion. I was told that ECVs could now fit through the queue and that they were no longer able to go in the previous accessible entrance unless the guest had gotten a guest assistance card. I did my best to go through the normal queue, however cobblestones and ECV/Wheelchairs do NOT get along when the rider's disability ins a chronic pain or back issue. After about 20 feet on the cobblestones I went from having a medium manageable pain night to having to leave the Park from the damage going over the cobblestones did to my body. We stopped by on my way out and complained, to what seemed to be indifferent Cast Members at Guest Relations.
In February I was having a high pain night, and they were out of ECVs, so I was in a wheelchair that my daughter kindly offered to push. I made sure to get the Guest Assistance Card so that I could use the back entrance and headed to the Haunted Mansion. As I headed to the back entrance, the cast members at the front of the queue started yelling at me across the walkway. I told them that I had a guest assistance card that said I could use the alternate entrances, and held it up so they could see. They continued to shout at me across the walkway. My party and I turned around to go explain to them what I needed. This experience turned ugly, and degraded very quickly as Matthew, a very tall and large cast member, stood over me in my wheelchair shaking his "Disney Point" hand in my face. I explained that if I had to cross the cobblestones, that I could not ride the ride. Members of my party (a nurse) explained the medical need, but Matthew and his cohort Joyce raised their voices and shouted at me that the new queue was ADA compliant and they the policy had changed, it didn't matter what my condition was. A crowd gathered around us, because who doesn't want to watch cast members yelling at a woman in a wheelchair who was now sobbing. We asked to speak to a manager... three times. When the "manager" got to us, it was not actually a manager. I think she said that she was a Cast Member Coordinator, and she was less then sympathetic to me (the troublemaker). Members of my party explained everything again to her and told her how poorly treated I was by the two cast members. She again told us that the new queue was ADA compliant, and begrudgingly got on the radio to get more help. The person on the radio, told her to let me go through the back, and she scolded me that it would "never happen again".
This experience was one of the most humiliating of my life. As I've mentioned before, being in a chair is not an easy choice for me to make. To have cast members yelling at me as they tower over and shake their hand in my face was awful, the awareness of the crowd forming around me, was horrific, and the rude, degrading treatment was anything but magical. It ruined not only my night, but scared the whole group as we all remained in shock over what had happened.
The next day, our last one on vacation, as I left the Magic Kingdom I decided to try and address the issue with Guest Relations. Three of my companions and I stopped in and met a very lovely cast member named Victoria, who actually listened to me. I relived the humiliating experience to her, and she grabbed a piece of paper to take notes, I started crying again and continued to explain the night. She tried to make restitution, and i told her that the only thing that I wanted was for it never to happen to anyone else. That I didn't expect them to re-pour the ground in the queue, but that something really needed to be done because the new ADA compliant queue was not accessible to everyone. Victoria, and her boss, and her bosses boss, listen to my story and all agreed that I had been seriously wronged. They assured me that the issues would be addressed, and my party left.
Yesterday, one of the friends who had been by my side throughout the experience was at the Magic Kingdom. It's only been a month since my bad experience. She tweeted me a picture of wheelchairs sitting at the alternate entrance, and told me that she saw many disabled guests going in and out that way. That means that what happened to me, and my being brave enough to continue to speak up about it made a difference. Apparently the policy has been changed. I appreciated Disney's efforts in making their parks accessible for all, and hope that they now understand that this means more than just creating a wider queue that you can get a chair through. Not all disabilities are created equal, and I hope that they continue to make exceptions for people who may need a little extra help.
This is a story about speaking up, about not settling, it's about finding the right person to talk to. So many folks tell me that Disney never listens, but that's not true. They do listen, and they do care, they want every guest to leave happy, and when something has truly gone wrong that is their fault, they do their best to fix it.
That's Magic...
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