Longtime Beyoncé fan Jon Hetherington was looking forward to having the night of his life at the September 14th Seattle show on the Renaissance Tour, when an airline unfortunately told him that his wheelchair would not fit on the plane.
After the incident left Hetherington who has cerebal palsy feeling hopeless and “demoralized,”he took to TikTok to let fellow BeyHive members know about the incident saying, “So after 25 years. I’m not seeing Beyoncé tonight… ableism strikes again.”
Soon after, the Hive started tagging Beyoncé and her team in the video’s comments, begging them to find a way to get a long-time fan to the concert of his dreams.
Hetherington posted a follow-up video thanking the Hive and explaining that he has difficulty outing the airline because they were trying to help him the best way they could but rather that the situation was a systematic issue, “It’s not just one airline. It’s all airlines. It’s every facet of our society that we have built to exclude disabled people.” He claims that he has flown with the airline before and there was a delay in getting his wheelchair on the plane, but he has never been told that his wheelchair didn’t meet the requirements for air travel.
In July 2022, Secretary Pete Buttigieg of the U.S. Department of Transportation spoke at the celebration for the 32nd anniversary of the Americans with Disabilities Act, speaking on the work ahead for safer and easier air travel for wheelchair users, “So, in the months and years ahead we plan to record a new rule, that will allow passengers to stay in their personal wheelchairs when they fly. We know this won’t happen overnight, but it is a goal that we have to work to fulfill.” Unfortunately, while those plans are still in the works for what could be years, more people will have to receive that disappointing news like Heatherington that there’s nothing that the airline can do to get the passenger to their destination.
All that was left to do was to wait. And lo and behold Beyoncé’s team arranged for Hetherington to get the correct air travel to attend the Dallas, Texas show on September 21. Not only did he get to see the show, he was given VIP treatment, receiving a seat on the floor and getting to meet Beyoncé’s mother, Tina Lawson, and Queen Bey. He took to Instagram to explain his appreciation for the support from the Hive, “We partied, we sang, we danced… HARD. Beyhive, you made this happen, you pushed and tagged like the internet has never seen.”
In another post, he showed off his selfie with Lawson typing the caption, “Truly an honor to meet you, @mstinaknowles! Thank you for all that you’ve done and given the world. To the Queen herself, @beyonce, I will treasure those words you said and the hugs you gave. I meant every word I said.”