The hostility of hospitality industry

No Entry-No Access regime

Discrimination has one language-segregation, ghettoizing and confinement. It is geography agnostic. Affirmative action campaigners who shepherd the causes of equity and justice know what gargantuan barriers they must grapple with. The hotel industry reflects the dustbin attitudes of the past when autistic individuals were classed as mental defectives, restricted behind high-walled institutions and perished there without ever stepping outside the perimeters of those facilities, without ever soaking in the wonders of our world.

It’s April and we are in the midst of Autism awareness and acceptance functions. However, all acceptance rituals seem a tragic farce when measured against what autism families face when they plan a holiday and a hotel stay.

Three days back I received a distressed message from Shweta Mahajan Vaidya, an autism mom who over the years has also become a dear friend. Shweta, a high ranking IT industry professional relocated to Singapore with her family because she felt that her son’s special education needs would be better addressed in that country and she was not disappointed. So after settling down, the family went for a vacation to Vietnam. And it is from there that her troubled message came: she and her family were forced out by the hotel they were staying at (Seashells Resorts) because of her son’s autism.

Worse still, they were threatened with police action. Shweta went public with her trauma and tagged the concerned entities on Facebook but to no avail. It was then that she turned to me for support, I promised that I would beam her message and cascade it as much as I could because the world needs to know.

But it is not my story to tell, it is Shweta’s so here it is in her words –

Being Autistic, Jai Vaidya, s/o Shweta Vaidya was refused stay at Seashells Resorts, Phuquoc. Jai studies at the Guild International College Singapore & is pursuing a vocational course based on a TTL (Transition to Life) Curriculum

“We planned a long holiday; our first time post covid. My son is 18 and has autism. Had booked this hotel from 3rd to 14th April. We were called by the hotel manager and she told us:
1) Your son has problems and parents need to keep him INSIDE the room.
2) You have to always keep an eye on him.
3) If he harms anyone then police will take action.

They gave us two options
A) Vacate the hotel and they will refund the money for rest of stay.
B) Or keep an eye on him at all times, keep him in the room and he should not create any trouble for anyone.
The trouble that he created as per hotel management was, ‘He was using service lift and pressing buttons. And one child got scared of him and started crying and parents complained to the reception.’We talked to the manager, wanted to talk to GM but he refused to talk. Seashells Phu Quoc also refused to document anything on mail. They maintained their two options verbally and strictly with authority. As a mother of a young autistic, I am aware that I need to be strong but somewhere during this journey I have started to feel like I am fighting a losing battle. Who can support families with special needs; I don’t know.. It’s easy to handle neurodiverse children but for Neurodiverse adults the battle is even tougher than I ever imagined.

Do we keep adults with special needs locked inside the room????? And take them along when it’s time for us to leave this world?? This world seems unbelievably cruel right now. As we are waiting out for a checkout, the manager is briskly roaming around, checking on so called normal customers.. and our family sitting in lobby waiting to leave this hotel.  #vietnam #VietnamTourismBoard #autismawareness #autism #phuquoc #SeashellsResort.”

Over the past three months, I have been chasing the top guns of the hospitality industry in India for a response about their preparedness to cater to the special needs community. I urged an answer repeatedly since most families with autistic children find a hotel stay challenging and many have forgone it for the lack of understanding and support services. A child or a young adult with autism may find hotel stay difficult due to (i) sensory differences (ii) preference for routines and predictability (iii) community interactions. Hotels cannot escape creating an inclusive environment for autistic people and those with special needs as this is ordained by the principles of social responsibility. My questions were simple and of a practical nature.

I wrote to functionaries of Indian Hotels Company Limited (IHCL), the Oberoi group, the Leela Palaces Hotels and Resorts, Marriott International, Shangri-La & Hyatt India. Only Hyatt responded. The Hyatt spokesperson sent a fairly long answer and said that not only do they accommodate autism needs but also provide opportunities for skilling of diverse special needs communities - “Diversity, equity, and inclusion are at the heart of Hyatt’s purpose to care for people so they can be their best, at the workplace and in society. Building on this purpose, Hyatt's global ESG platform ‘World of Care’ addresses the pressing challenges faced by colleagues, guests, owners and communities, and enacts meaningful change within the industry. This also includes the offering of specialized services and amenities to welcome differently-abled guests across Hyatt hotel and ‘autism-friendly’ accommodations to make the stay of families with special needs children less challenging and comfortable. For example, efforts have also been undertaken at Andaz Delhi to support differently-abled individuals with skills training, through a strategic partnership with Action for Ability Development & Inclusion (AADI). Today, members of AADI have undergone a training programme specially designed for them which has led to them joining Andaz Delhi as interns.

Across Hyatt hotels, regular sensitization and awareness classes are organised to foster an inclusive environment in which specially-abled colleagues can grow and develop the skills necessary to support their families and be independent.”

Conclusion

Meanwhile, as I write this, Shweta is journeying back to her home in Singapore. Yet another trip gone awry, another searing experience. Hotels, tour operators and the travel industry are in dire need of sensitization. Globally, the Hospitality Industry associations must play a major role. It can also be marked as one of the mandates of corporate social responsibility. Inclusion does not belong to the realm of theory or routine espousals; it has to be acted and lived out in the real world. To borrow Swami Vivekananda’s words, it is in being and becoming.