Six Flags Magic Mountain theme park in Valencia, California. Six Flags faces accusations that its handicap access procedures violate the Americans with Disabilities Act. (Dream Time/TNS)
Six Flags faces allegations of discrimination, with a lawsuit claiming that the system its parks and several others use to provide accommodations for the disabled violates the Americans with Disabilities Act.
The lawsuit filed late last year by a California Army veteran known as IL, who has physical and mental disabilities, says Six Flags’ “Attraction Access Program” illegally discriminates against people with disabilities.
To receive handicap accommodations at Six Flags parks, the program requires visitors to register at least 48 hours before their visit with a third-party company called the International Board for Credentialing and Continuing Education Standards, or IBCCES, and provide personal information and medical. documentation to obtain the Individual Accessibility Card.
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By contrast, the lawsuit filed in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of California notes that typically developed visitors can purchase tickets upon arrival at Six Flags parks and immediately enjoy the amenities “without any planning.” or prior preparation.”
“Because disabled people must gather the necessary medical documentation and submit it along with their application on the IBCCES website prior to their visit to the park, people with disabilities do not have the same luxury offered to people without disabilities” , the lawsuit states. “Therefore, defendants failed to implement policies, procedures, and practices that respect the civil rights and needs of people with disabilities.”
The lawsuit states that the ADA prohibits entities from asking about the nature or extent of a person’s disability or requiring documentation.
The IBCCES Individual Accessibility Card has been adopted by several parks in recent years, including Universal Studios and Sesame Place, as a means of determining who qualifies for disability accommodations. Six Flags began using the system at its U.S. parks in 2020, according to the lawsuit.
The lawsuit, which seeks class-action status, names Six Flags Entertainment Corporation and Magic Mountain LLC, a subsidiary of Six Flags that operates Six Flags Magic Mountain in Valencia, California. It seeks to force parks to change their policies for access to disability accommodations as well as “declaratory relief, injunctive and equitable relief, and attorneys’ fees and costs” under the ADA. Additionally, the lawsuit asserts claims under the California Unruh Civil Rights Act and the California Disabled Persons Act.
The complaint states that IL applied for and received an Individual Accessibility Card from IBCCES, but that on multiple visits to Six Flags Magic Mountain employees denied him accommodations because they said he did not appear to qualify for the Attractions Access Program. In one case, the lawsuit claims that a park employee tore up the Individual Accessibility Card and told IL that he “didn’t seem disabled enough” to have the listed accommodations.
Six Flags and IBCCES did not respond to requests for comment on the lawsuit.
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