City council member forced to climb onto Denver debate stage due to lack of wheelchair access

Denver City Council member Chris Hinds said he was humiliated when he had to get out of his wheelchair and attempt to crawl onto a stage before a debate because the venue did not have proper accessibility.

“I am incredibly disappointed and disheartened after the public humiliation I endured at Monday’s District 10 City Council Debate,” he said in a Twitter statement.

The debate was held at the Cleo Parker Robinson Dance school in Denver. Photos posted on social media showed Hinds sitting on the edge of the stage as he tried to make his way to the debate area.

“The lack of wheelchair accessibility on the stage at the debate culminated in an extremely uncomfortable outcome: I had to climb out of my wheelchair and attempt to crawl onto the stage in front of a crowd,” Hinds wrote.

The debate was eventually moved to the floor so Hinds could participate.

Paul D. López, with the Denver Clerk and Recorder’s Office, said he regrets what happened.

“No one should have that experience, and I have apologized to Councilman Hinds personally,” he said in a statement. “Our office continues to communicate with all debate sponsors to ensure that they can fulfill ADA requirements and other needs.”

The office said that sponsors of the debate coordinated with candidates for any pre-planning, format, and logistics. In order to be sanctioned, the sponsors filled out an application stating that they meet basic requirements including ADA accessibility.

Cleo Parker Robinson Dance school submitted the sponsor application and was approved, López said. The school did not immediately return NBC News’ request for comment Thursday.

In a statement to NBC affiliate KUSA of Denver, the dance school said that “there were no requests for additional or enhanced accommodations.”

“Three of the four candidates arrived 2.5 hours in advance of the event February 13, 2023, upon the CPRD event staff request. This enabled final adjustments and accommodations,” the school said.

The school’s executive director, Malik Robinson, told the news station that they are “working diligently on a long-term solution.”

Hinds told KUSA that part of the reason he decided to climb out of his wheelchair was the pressure to do the debate. He wrote on Twitter that he was told that if he did not participate he would need to forfeit his $125,000 in Fair Election Fund money.

The councilman said he felt like he had to choose “to either preserve the campaign’s viability or his dignity.”

At the very least, Hinds said he hopes the incident serves as a reminder that ADA accessibility is still an issue. “Our democracy is stronger when it represents everyone, and this is another example why we need disability representation,” he said in his statement.

Source: | This article originally belongs to Nbcnews.com