Guest ADA Venue Review: By ~ Krys Edmonds of Down the Rabbit Hole, Jannus Live, St. Petersburg

As a member of the disabled community who is a huge music lover and a member of the metal community in general, I decided many moons ago to start advocating for disability rights and calling out music venues that are unsafe and unfit for people like me when they are not ADA compliant. While I have filed complaints with the BBB, EEOC, and the Civil Rights Board, they never seem to follow through with holding venues accountable.

Earlier this year, I moved to Florida as a means to get a fresh start on life. Just recently (this month), my housemate and I traveled roughly two hours to St. Petersburg, Florida to Jannua Live to see one of my favorite bands ~ Dayseeker. Also on this tour there was another band we absolutely love, Catch Your Breath. I reached out to the venue like I always do when going to a concert and let them know that I was disabled and needed accommodations for my safety.

The return email was not only evasive, but they also lied to me and told me there was a section where I could go for the show. Never going to Jannus Live before, neither of us, we had no idea what to expect. I have several assistance devices for myself because my disability doesn’t allow me to stand for long periods of time. I have to sit at concerts, or I’ll end up needing medical attention. Did I fail to mention that I’m also a concert photographer? (wonderland by krys)

When we got there, not only were there no employees around to speak to, but we also realized that Jannus Live is just an area on a street that was made into a venue! The ground was cobblestoned in places, and I almost fell, even with my assisted device. We made it through the meet and greet. It was wonderful to see Rory, Ramone, Gino and Zac again. (This was my fifth time to see them within a wee bit more than a year.) After the meet and greet was over, that is when we realized there was nothing but stairs up into the section, they told me where to go.

And guess what? This was NOT an ADA section at all. We were surrounded by regular attendees that didn’t give two craps that I couldn’t see over them while sitting down. Safety was definitely an issue any way we looked at it. The staff was extremely rude and not helpful. All they said is, “go up there and just be careful.” I even told one security guard that their venue was not ADA compliant, and he looked at me with a blank stare on his face. Another thing that made it worse was there were no EMT’s on site for emergencies.

We ended up having to leave early due to feeling very unsafe in this venue and the fact that I had a panic attack due to feeling unsafe. I missed Dayseeker’s set, and I cried all the way home. We as a community must shed light on venues like Jannus Live so they will be forced to make their venues safe and compliant, because we as disabled folks deserve to be there as much as anyone else.

You can find my blog, Down the Rabbit Hole, on Tumblr. Wonderland by Krys can be found on Facebook.

Wonderland by Krys: https://www.facebook.com/share/t1dqikopQ4bb5aCf/?mibextid=LQQJ4d Down The Rabbit Hole: https://downtherabbitholewithauntieblegh.tumblr.com/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/wonderland_by_krys