September 23rd 2023.
Jon Hetherington has been a long time Beyoncé fan and was all set to fly out to Seattle, Washington for her Renaissance Tour performance on September 14. Unfortunately, he was denied access to the plane due to his wheelchair supposedly being too tall. This sparked a video on TikTok from Hetherington which quickly went viral.
In the video, Hetherington expressed his dismay about not being able to attend. He said, "Well, I guess I'm not going to Seattle, and I'm not seeing Beyoncé. Got to the airport and they tell me that my chair is apparently four inches too tall to be loaded onto the plane."
Airline employees informed him that the plane's cargo capacity wouldn't allow for his chair to fit, and were unable to collapse it down to size. They provided Hetherington with a complaint resolution form and sent him on his way.
Hetherington was taken back as he had taken a flight to Seattle two weeks prior without any issue. He opened up to NPR about the situation, saying "I went outside, and I was just pissed. I was demoralized at that point. This is not about a concert. This is not about one artist. This is not about one airline. This is about systemic issues of ableism that are happening every day. Disabled people are dealing with this in society, in general, and our society has been built to exclude disabled people. That's what's important."
The video drew in hundreds of viewers and even caught the attention of Beyoncé's production company Parkwood Entertainment. One of Beyoncé's representatives contacted Hetherington and flew him out to Dallas for a front-row seat to her show.
Hetherington posted an Instagram photo with Beyoncé and wrote a heartfelt caption. He said, "To the queen herself @beyonce, I will treasure those words you said and the hugs you gave. I meant every word I said. No, for anyone and everyone reading this, I will not ever share with you what was said to me, don't even try it. That moment is between the two of us."
The story of Jon Hetherington is a testament to the power of perseverance and kindness. In a world where ableism is still an issue, it's heartwarming to see how Beyoncé reached out to help. We hope Hetherington's story will inspire others to stand up against systemic ableism and fight for inclusivity.
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