AfroFuture Fest ceases race-based ticket pricing following backlash

Afrofuture Festival, which is set to take place in August, just updated the ticket policy after they were criticized for charging white people more for tickets than people of color.

The festival takes place in Detroit, and was charging white people or “NONPOC” $40 while people of color were $20. 

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The Eventbrite page explained the disparity in pricing among different ethnic groups. 

“Our ticket structure was built to insure that the most marginalized communities (people of color) are provided with an equitable chance at enjoying events in their own community,” it reads. “We’ve seen too many times orgasmic events happening in Detroit and other POC populated cities and what consistently happens is people outside of the community benefiting most from affordable ticket prices because of their prosperity to wealth.” 

After all of the attention, Evenbrite threatened to pull their festival from the site. 

“Our mission is to bring the world together through live experiences,” Eventbrite said in a statement to The Independent. “We strive to provide a platform that enables people to gather for their chosen purpose, and that reflects diverse viewpoints, so long as they don’t violate our terms.”

The statement continued: “We do not permit events that require attendees to pay different prices based on their protected characteristics such as race or ethnicity.

“In this case, we have notified the creator of the event about this violation and requested that they alter their event accordingly,” the statement concluded. “We have offered them the opportunity to do this on their own accord; should they not wish to comply we will unpublish the event completely from our site.”

However, after the backlash, the company made all tickets $20 with a suggested donation for non-people of color. 

The founder and co-director of the festival Adrienne Ayers said they changed the pricing due to “threats and harassment” after “right-wing websites highlighted the pricing.”

One biracial performer Tiny Jag decided to cancel her appearance at the show due to the policy prior to the company changing it.

“This does not reflect the views of myself of the Tiny Jag team. I will not be playing this show. I apologize to anyone who may have been triggered or offended,” she wrote on Twitter.

Many people had a lot to say about the festival’s policy on Twitter.

Check out what they’re saying below.

You can find more information about the festival here.

What do you think about the Afrofuture Festival situation? Sound off in the comments down below!

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