Ben Wright-Heuman - Cartoonist Extraordinaire
  • Home
  • Comics
    • CanonWrite Productions >
      • Less Than Secret
    • The Letters of the Devil
    • CosPain
    • Minicomics
    • Anthology Submissions
  • Illustrations
    • Original
    • Fanart
    • Caricatures
  • Portfolio
    • General
    • CV
  • About
  • Store
    • Physical Store
    • Digital Store
  • Contact
  • Commissions
  • Links
  • Patrons
  • Twitch

CosPain0257

9/13/2022

0 Comments

 
Picture
<<First  <Previous                    Next>  Last>>
Conventions have been struggling to figure out how to adjust their policies as the state of the pandemic evolves. Many have made their positions clear on requiring masks, proof of vaccination, negative tests, etc. That information is used by staffers, vendors, and attendees alike to inform which events they can and cannot attend, based on their own health, safety, and comfort levels. Which is why conventions that do what I described in this comic truly crossed a line.

The convention this comic was based on (which I will not name but is an
Anime con in the Central United States) announced on Twitter, several weeks before the event, that no further changes to their COVID policies would be occurring. Masks would be required, and nobody would be admitted without proof of vaccination and/or a negative test. Every anime convention I have attended since the beginning of the year has had very similar policies, and they work well.

Then, only four days before this convention was set to start, their board of directors posted across social media that they were making masks optional and no longer requiring proof of vaccination or a negative test. They claimed that this was due to "changes in COVID protocols by the CDC" and the requirements of the convention center, neither of which had actually changed in months. They also made it clear that the refund deadline had passed, which meant that anyone who had bought tickets and chose not to attend for any reason couldn't get refunded. Most of their staffers were unaware of the change prior to the public announcement.

The backlash online was intense. People felt like they'd been scammed, as many of them were also unable to cancel their travel or lodging arrangements at this late date. A number of staffers quit in protest, and many of them reportedly faced retaliation as a result. The convention did eventually partially reinstate its masking policy, but that was the only positive change.

The worst part is, the convention probably didn't lose much money for doing this. They kept a lot of badge fees from people who never ended up attending. I've also heard reports of attendees testing positive after the event, which is hardly unexpected considering the circumstances. So they created an unsafe environment, waited until the last minute to let people know so they couldn't get refunded, and got away with it. For now.

The thing is, a lot of people are going to remember that this happened. My hope is that next year, all the cons that pulled stunts like this (because there WERE others) will find their attendance dramatically reduced. I've personally written this con off as one I'll never attend, at least until there is some serious reorganization.

As one final note, I'd like to compliment
Super MAGFest for how they handled their policies this year. My friends and I, despite having gotten non-refundable badges ahead of time, did not attend their event this year because of a massive outbreak of the Omicron variant in the area. MAGFest's response? In addition to keeping their reasonable COVID policy in place, they made an exception to their no-refunds rule and gave us our money back. This policy may have cost them some money right then, but we'll all definitely be going back to Super MAGFest next year. Hopefully, more cons will follow their example.

Rock on, guys, and never stop drawing.
0 Comments

Your comment will be posted after it is approved.


Leave a Reply.

    About

    CosPain is a comedy comic strip about the insanity that happens at cons, especially in relation to the cosplay community.  New strips post every Tuesday at noon EST.

    Older Posts

    April 2025
    March 2025
    February 2025
    January 2025
    November 2024
    October 2024
    September 2024
    August 2024
    July 2024
    June 2024
    May 2024
    April 2024
    March 2024
    February 2024
    January 2024
    December 2023
    November 2023
    October 2023
    September 2023
    August 2023
    July 2023
    June 2023
    May 2023
    April 2023
    March 2023
    February 2023
    January 2023
    December 2022
    November 2022
    October 2022
    September 2022
    August 2022
    July 2022
    June 2022
    May 2022
    April 2022
    March 2022
    February 2022
    January 2022
    December 2021
    November 2021
    October 2021
    September 2021
    August 2021
    July 2021
    June 2021
    May 2021
    April 2021
    March 2021
    February 2021
    January 2021
    December 2020
    November 2020
    October 2020
    September 2020
    August 2020
    July 2020
    June 2020
    May 2020
    April 2020
    March 2020
    February 2020
    January 2020
    December 2019
    November 2019
    October 2019
    September 2019
    August 2019
    July 2019
    June 2019
    May 2019
    April 2019
    March 2019
    February 2019
    January 2019
    December 2018
    November 2018
    October 2018
    September 2018
    August 2018
    July 2018
    June 2018
    May 2018
    April 2018
    March 2018
    February 2018
    January 2018
    December 2017
    November 2017
    October 2017
    September 2017
    August 2017
    July 2017

    Archive
    Picture
    Picture
    Cosplay is not consent.
    Please support the CSSN.
    We Believe You.
    Picture
    Check out my other webcomic, The Letters of the Devil!
    Picture

      Join the Mailing List!

    Subscribe to Newsletter

    Join the Mailing List!

Subscribe to Newsletter
© COPYRIGHT 2018 Benjamin Wright-Heuman. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.
  • Home
  • Comics
    • CanonWrite Productions >
      • Less Than Secret
    • The Letters of the Devil
    • CosPain
    • Minicomics
    • Anthology Submissions
  • Illustrations
    • Original
    • Fanart
    • Caricatures
  • Portfolio
    • General
    • CV
  • About
  • Store
    • Physical Store
    • Digital Store
  • Contact
  • Commissions
  • Links
  • Patrons
  • Twitch