Post #1155771

I attended a poetry event at yet another inaccessible venue tonight. My support worker and I trekked up a flight of stairs with a break in the railing, stepped over cables running across the floor at the top, and navigated pillows scattered across the floor for extra seating in front of the performance area. Every time I attend another of these events I feel it. Not even surprise anymore. Just that quiet, familiar “of course.” Every time, I am more determined to create a space that is accessible and inclusive of all. Somewhere that support workers don’t have to plan our exits with as much concentration as completing puzzles. Somewhere you can just arrive and exist without having to fight the room first. The biggest barrier right now is finding a venue. And maybe that means I have to make some sacrifices. Maybe it means losing some of the crowd. But I would rather build something smaller that actually includes people, than keep showing up to spaces that don’t.