Article: Is Disney Dissing the Disabled?

[MidwayState]

1) For us, it is Yes, we would mind.
2) Why should people get a second or third ride before others get a first ride?
3) This is not called guest ACCESS, this is guest PREFERENCE.
4) The ADA prescribes access, but doesn't mandate preference.

I am with you. My family has been standing there for an hour and our feet are killing us and we'd like to ride that ride and move on to the next hour long line while you want to do it over and over so that you don't have to bother explaining to your child that other people also would like to ride? No...just no. These are the people that are the problem. Plain and simple. That is entitlement, not access. I would crawl under a rock before I would cruise by people that have been standing there in the heat a SECOND time! wow!

 

[sharadoc]

Did you ask him if he'd be okay with 25% of the park jumping in front of him? I've read some crazy numbers on boards over the last few days of just how many GAC users are riding the more popular rides. 25% of the riders or more for some rides are GAC holders. How do people find that sustainable? Those who shouldn't have a GAC would bring that number down somewhat but those who do need a GAC are still abusing the system and are why it is being changed.

That's in Disneyland, where the GAC change was originally supposed to happen anyway. Understandable - most people go to DL for only one day, so the requests for GACs were overhwelming them. I wonder if there are any stats for WDW like that. I know when we've used it, we've rarely seen more than one other family using a GAC with us.

 

[sharadoc]

I am with you. My family has been standing there for an hour and our feet are killing us and we'd like to ride that ride and move on to the next hour long line while you want to do it over and over so that you don't have to bother explaining to your child that other people also would like to ride? No...just no. These are the people that are the problem. Plain and simple. That is entitlement, not access. I would crawl under a rock before I would cruise by people that have been standing there in the heat a SECOND time! wow!

Please don't equate using a GAC with riding one ride over and over. That should not be allowed, I agree.

I do need to correct you on the "you don't have to bother explaining to your child that other people also would like to ride" Autism first and foremost is the inability to communicate. Many of these kids don't understand language and when they do, it's usually concrete factual information and nothing abstract or conceptual. They do not understand time and the passage of time. So please don't assume that it's laziness on the part of the parents, or a spoiled kid, or a sense of entitlement. It's literally a language barrier.

 

[OneLittleSpark1]

I have been reading over some various sites, including this one, and I have noticed something that to me is as contradictory as when people say, "There are times that I wait even longer than standby with my GAC. HOLD ON! Disney isn't giving me front of the line access??? I'm mad!"

Everyone keeps talking about how the few GAC people don't add much wait to the standby...yet, there are lots of people, who are now saying with the new system that Disney will be regretting the change when thousands and thousands of disabled people no longer go to the parks.

SO...where are these thousands and thousands of people when in the lines?

Just another example of the contradiction on this subject.

 

[KGK]

You'll have to scroll down a bit here to "The Line King" portion of the article.

http://miceage.micechat.com/allutz/al091812a.htm

Interesting article but the statistic is for one ride at Disneyland. The point is made (many references not just this article) that the GAC system is being overwhelmed. I would just like to see some sanity from some of the posters here. Hope springs eternal.

So we've got to give the new system the benefit of the doubt. I'm betting some of the people who have legitimate needs for special consideration will be disappointed. I'm betting there will be plenty of people complaining that the new system is being abused as much as the GAC. And I’m betting the cheaters will find a way… and barely be disappointed at all.

I was going to end this asking for a little compassion. But the truth is, most Disney guests are full of compassion and would gladly give a helping hand. And the rest complain loudly about having to wait. I mean if you're going to go nuts over something, why not something important. (strollers running into people? South American tourist groups? oh the list goes on and on )

 

[sbelyo]

Did you read the whole thread through? I am just wondering bc you have ascribed some things to Midway that other people said, and she was replying. Not too mention, most of the things you wrote was taken out of context.

In your first quote Midway was referring to another poster who said that due to the fact spending the same amount as others on a ticket they are only able to spend a fraction of the time that others are, they should have front of the line access. THE ORIGINAL POSTER WHO MIDWAY WAS REFERRING TO BROUGHT UP WHAT WAS SPENT ON THE TICKET....NOT MIDWAY.
I believe Midway was pointing out that you can't base a GAC/DAS on how long a person is in the park, as there are lots of reasons people can't stay all day, and being disabled is just one of them.

Again, with your last quote, Midway was referring to a post where someone said that they couldn't stay in a park as long as others and in order to do the same amount of things as a non-disabled they would need 8+days to do it and they can't afford that, so therefore, they should get a front of the line pass. In her response, she was making the point that there are all kinds of reasons...again...for not being able to do as much in a park. Being poor and only being able to afford a minimum number of days, is one example. Disney isn't handing out GAC/DAS for people who can only afford 3 days so they can ride more, bc they have less chances to ride than someone who is staying 8 days.

I really think that you took Midway's comments out of context.

I did read the thread but did not catch who and what she was quoting. For that, it may be my mistake and I do apologize that I may have indeed taken it out of context.

I saw the post was made without quoting others and therefore understood it as Midway agreed with everything that was written by her or did I mis understand that as well?

 

[KGK]

I am with you. My family has been standing there for an hour and our feet are killing us and we'd like to ride that ride and move on to the next hour long line while you want to do it over and over so that you don't have to bother explaining to your child that other people also would like to ride? No...just no. These are the people that are the problem. Plain and simple. That is entitlement, not access. I would crawl under a rock before I would cruise by people that have been standing there in the heat a SECOND time! wow!

Nope, don't think her comments were taken out of context....

 

[Aladora]

People on scooters and in wheelchairs have already been addressed when they made the lines handicap accessible. Hiring a person in a wheelchair to get you on a ride faster might have worked in the 90's but it ain't working today sister so that story is fabricated to create a villain to blame here. Everyone can hate on the "rich housewife hiring a handicapped guy". B.S!!! It's so much easier to get people behind you saying that rather than saying, "hey, teach your kid to wait his turn and stop using that flimsy excuse to cut the lines." And there you have it. Harsh? yes. Truth? YES!

I've stayed out of this thread until now but had to correct you on this.

WDW has made most of their rides accessible, however many of the rides in Disneyland are not.

This is why most of the "GAC being used as an unlimited FP" and "hiring someone who is disabled as a guide" stories are coming out of California instead of Florida.

 

[MidwayState]

I've stayed out of this thread until now but had to correct you on this.

WDW has made most of their rides accessible, however many of the rides in Disneyland are not.

This is why most of the "GAC being used as an unlimited FP" and "hiring someone who is disabled as a guide" stories are coming out of California instead of Florida.

hmm...interesting. Thanks for that info. any reason DL didn't re-do their lines and WDW did?

 

[Aladora]

hmm...interesting. Thanks for that info. any reason DL didn't re-do their lines and WDW did?

My guess, and this is ONLY a guess is that since they are grandfathered in and are not required to make them accessible, they chose not to. The rides there, especially the Fantasyland ones would be difficult to make accessible.

But, before anyone tells me sternly that I am totally wrong, this is just a guess!

 

[MidwayState]

Please don't equate using a GAC with riding one ride over and over. That should not be allowed, I agree.

I do need to correct you on the "you don't have to bother explaining to your child that other people also would like to ride" Autism first and foremost is the inability to communicate. Many of these kids don't understand language and when they do, it's usually concrete factual information and nothing abstract or conceptual. They do not understand time and the passage of time. So please don't assume that it's laziness on the part of the parents, or a spoiled kid, or a sense of entitlement. It's literally a language barrier.

I understand that completely, but many many people have posted that they go to WDW so that they can be "normal" and leave the hassle of all of the above behind. Not as much on these boards but over on PP that is ALL they talk about. It's like they want to pretend that these issues aren't there because WDW has always gone above and beyond to make their trip carefree so these are the people that are most annoyed with the changes. So in the instances that I am talking about, it very much does sound like laziness. I know that not everyone is on the same level of the people that post on other boards, but it does happen and I've heard about it for so long that I can't even stand to post on those "boards of entitlement" any longer.

 

[AndreaA]

Everyone keeps talking about how the few GAC people don't add much wait to the standby...yet, there are lots of people, who are now saying with the new system that Disney will be regretting the change when thousands and thousands of disabled people no longer go to the parks.

SO...where are these thousands and thousands of people when in the lines?

Just another example of the contradiction on this subject.

Just think for a minute. Even if there are THOUSANDS of people using a GAC in WDW, they are NOT all standing in the same ride line. They are spread out over four parks, over 12-hr days. We went with a GAC and saw at most ONE other person with a GAC in line with us at any ride. We lengthened the wait of those in the standby line by about 30 seconds. Sorry, but I don't feel the slightest bit guilty about that. Of course maybe those in line would have preferred to have my son bumping into them, poking them, shaking the line chains, attempting to wander past them, slowing/stopping the line when he got distracted and hearing us repeatedly trying to get his attention and calm him down and get him to stop his behavior. For twenty to thirty minutes. Yeah, I'm sure they would have liked that much more than having to wait an extra 30 seconds in relative peace and quiet.

For those who are saying that GAC holders were seriously affecting your kids' enjoyment of the parks, I want to know exactly how many people you saw carrying a GAC.

 

[Talking Hands]

Please don't equate using a GAC with riding one ride over and over. That should not be allowed, I agree.

I do need to correct you on the "you don't have to bother explaining to your child that other people also would like to ride" Autism first and foremost is the inability to communicate. Many of these kids don't understand language and when they do, it's usually concrete factual information and nothing abstract or conceptual. They do not understand time and the passage of time. So please don't assume that it's laziness on the part of the parents, or a spoiled kid, or a sense of entitlement. It's literally a language barrier.

Having worked with autistic kids in elementary and high school I have to say this. Autistic children can be prepared before they arrive at Disney through social stories and practice to not have a melt down when they can't ride again and again. We do this yearly with students before the Youth Fair. And I can tell you that the language barrier is more expressive than comprehension. We really don't know what a people is understanding if they cannot communicate back to us. This is not unique to autism. I have bumped into students in the community where the parent could not control the child but they would calm down when I spoke the them. Even had one see me in the grocery and start signing to me when he had never communicated with his Mom. We had been using it at school. I know autistic children can be challenging. I have one on the spectrum (high functioning).

 

[MidwayState]

My guess, and this is ONLY a guess is that since they are grandfathered in and are not required to make them accessible, they chose not to. The rides there, especially the Fantasyland ones would be difficult to make accessible.

But, before anyone tells me sternly that I am totally wrong, this is just a guess!

That would make sense. It IS really cramped there. I don't think it was a have to situation at WDW either, but I would be willing to guess that they have just as many issues with abuse as DL or it wouldn't have been done. All rides were accessible always but they DID change it from anyone in a chair having front of the line access to waiting with the rest of the crowd. I think that was by choice, not by law. Access is all they are required to provide.

 

[OurBigTrip]

Please don't equate using a GAC with riding one ride over and over. That should not be allowed, I agree.

I do need to correct you on the "you don't have to bother explaining to your child that other people also would like to ride" Autism first and foremost is the inability to communicate. Many of these kids don't understand language and when they do, it's usually concrete factual information and nothing abstract or conceptual. They do not understand time and the passage of time. So please don't assume that it's laziness on the part of the parents, or a spoiled kid, or a sense of entitlement. It's literally a language barrier.

I don't for a second believe it is laziness on the part of the parent, nor do I believe for a second that's just a kid being bratty. My point is, it makes no difference what the reason is. No kid, save a Wish child, should be permitted to skip to the front of the line with no waiting. And no kid, save a Wish child,should be able to ride repeatedly while others are waiting. Period.

 

[OneLittleSpark1]

Of course maybe those in line would have preferred to have my son bumping into them, poking them, shaking the line chains, attempting to wander past them, slowing/stopping the line when he got distracted and hearing us repeatedly trying to get his attention and calm him down and get him to stop his behavior. For twenty to thirty minutes. Yeah, I'm sure they would have liked that much more than having to wait an extra 30 seconds in relative peace and quiet.

What you describe here...that is what an alternate entrance/wait area/DAS FP is for. No one cares that he waits elsewhere instead of in line...what people are caring about is whether he waits at all. A person can wait in an alternate entrance (or even anywhere they choose with the DAS FP) bothering no one and still waiting their turn.

 

[AndreaA]

What you describe here...that is what an alternate entrance/wait area/DAS FP is for. No one cares that he waits elsewhere instead of in line...what people are caring about is whether he waits at all. A person can wait in an alternate entrance (or even anywhere they choose with the DAS FP) bothering no one and still waiting their turn.

And I have stated in other threads that the new procedure will likely not affect us, EXCEPT that I think it is ludicrous that we should be expected to "find something else to do" for waits that are only 15-20min (which is average at the times of year we visit) because there is NO ride you can do in that time span, you can't repeatedly take a child into a gift store without buying something and you cannot repeatedly shove food or drink at them to distract them. However, I think that Disney will end up going the route of Universal and allowing immediate FP-line access if the standby wait is under 30 minutes.

However, my concern is more for those people who this new system will not work for. Those who have feeding schedules, breathing apparatus, medication schedules, etc., which can mean that they are only in the parks for a very short amount of time or that they may have to leave at a moment's notice. I know that some people say "too bad, so sad" for people in those situations, but I take a different position.

 

[OneLittleSpark1]

I did read the thread but did not catch who and what she was quoting. For that, it may be my mistake and I do apologize that I may have indeed taken it out of context.

I saw the post was made without quoting others and therefore understood it as Midway agreed with everything that was written by her or did I mis understand that as well?

I am unsure of what you are speaking in the last paragraph you wrote.

Basically, Midway was saying that just because you don't spend as much time in the parks being disabled as non disabled people do (and how can one even judge that really?) doesn't mean you should get a front of the line/immediate access card.

The person that she was responding to, whether she quoted them or not, was saying they should be able to skip ahead bc of the fact of not being in the park all day, and they even spend the same amount on a ticket, even though they don't stay all day. Meaning they are getting less for their money than others. Midway was disagreeing with that...as we all should.

I said before, and I say it again. There is no ride quota or minimum.

Disney can not base GAC/DAS cards on how long people stay in the parks. People have a variety of reasons they can not stay all day, including but not limited to being disabled. Any of those half day people (including disabled people) can not in good common sense say they should get immediate access bc of it.

When it comes down to it, you replied to Midway that it has nothing to do with what was paid for the ticket. And that was Midway was saying as well. It was the poster she was responding to that said they pay full price for a ticket, yet only stay half the day, so they should get immediate access.

 

[OurBigTrip]

And I have stated in other threads that the new procedure will likely not affect us, EXCEPT that I think it is ludicrous that we should be expected to "find something else to do" for waits that are only 15-20min (which is average at the times of year we visit) because there is NO ride you can do in that time span, you can't repeatedly take a child into a gift store without buying something and you cannot repeatedly shove food or drink at them to distract them. However, I think that Disney will end up going the route of Universal and allowing immediate FP-line access if the standby wait is under 30 minutes.

If the standby line is only 30 minutes, then you should have to either wait in the standby line or Disney should issue a return time.

Unless a guest is a) a Wish child or b) on the personalized tour FOTL access should be barred.

 

[OneLittleSpark1]

And I have stated in other threads that the new procedure will likely not affect us, EXCEPT that I think it is ludicrous that we should be expected to "find something else to do" for waits that are only 15-20min (which is average at the times of year we visit) because there is NO ride you can do in that time span, you can't repeatedly take a child into a gift store without buying something and you cannot repeatedly shove food or drink at them to distract them. However, I think that Disney will end up going the route of Universal and allowing immediate FP-line access if the standby wait is under 30 minutes.

However, my concern is more for those people who this new system will not work for. Those who have feeding schedules, breathing apparatus, medication schedules, etc., which can mean that they are only in the parks for a very short amount of time or that they may have to leave at a moment's notice. I know that some people say "too bad, so sad" for people in those situations, but I take a different position.

If the standby line is only 30 minutes, then you should have to either wait in the standby line or Disney should issue a return time.

Unless a guest is a) a Wish child or b) on the personalized tour FOTL access should be barred.

Agreed!

What you have written here Andrea, makes no sense to me. You have no problem waiting your turn as long as it's over 30 minutes? But if it's under 30 minutes then you think you should get immediate access? That brings it back around to...I want immediate access and/or for my time to ride to be convenient for me.