Before Christmas I had a mini meltdown when I tried to book concert tickets for one of my favourite artists, only to find the venue had sold out of all their access tickets (and essential companion tickets) ahead of the tickets going on general sale.
I was beyond outraged and found the injustice of the situation disgusting. After speaking to the venue and getting nowhere, I decided to go direct to the artist who was touring internationally at the time. I didn’t hold out much hope, but this particular artist is known for responding to fans so I think they ought to be made aware of the inequity facing their Disabled fans.
Surprisingly they got back to me in a matter of days, and whilst the issue wasn’t a simple fix the artist, along with the powers that be, seem to have sorted the whole thing out. I felt so grateful and the experience got me thinking about the importance of allyship.
Allyship - the actions, behaviors, and practices that leaders take to support, amplify, and advocate with others - most especially with individuals who don’t belong to the same social identities as themselves.
In the world we live in allyship is more important than ever, a world where equality, diversity and inclusion are being underplayed and vilified by some of the most powerful people on Earth. The damning of diversity, equality and inclusion as some ‘woke’ box ticking exercise in the political sphere is genuinely scary. As a Disabled person, I once again feel like my value in society is being diminished by figures who do not value the opinion of people who do not look like them - sound familiar?
That’s why the actions of individuals are more powerful than ever and kindness is king. We can all control how we respond to such hate an ignorance, that’s the power we have. Little demonstrations of allyship, big or small are worth more now than ever.
Allies, we appreciate you.
ID: Me in my chair wearing a bright yellow 'Thatchers' hat on a summers day at Victorious Festival - a hopeful reminder that Summer is just around the corner and festival season with it!
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