On September 12th, when I went to see Def Leppard in concert, security was Ocean Coast Security and for the most part, you didn't really encounter them too much unless they came to talk to you about going back to your seat or perhaps breaking up a fight or a fan that might try to jump the stage.
There wasn't any fights and the most I saw was someone being escorted out of the building when she was doing something, I don't know what. Security didn't care if you took pictures of the show and a lot were taking photographs and there was even someone with a big lense taking photos and they didn't say anything.
The fans were well behaved and not causing any trouble really. Occasionally security told them to go back to their seats and one guy told me to step back when I had one foot half an inch out of the line of the chairs, I ignored that.
Security wasn't a problem until after the show when fans including myself were by the buses. The fans weren't doing anything except standing by the gate and talking amongst themselves and just hanging out and waiting for the guys to come out.
In the 4 or 5 years I have been attending this venue, security was always very cool about letting fans hang out at the buses and didn't say anything except to tell you to make sure not to get in the way when the gate would open.
This venue was the most accessible venue I have ever come across when it came to meeting the guys but this is no more. While standing by the buses, security comes along and tells everyone to clear out and the fans were doing nothing wrong. The fans were standing there talking, not getting in the way and no one was trying to sneak in, they were just waiting for the guys.
Security comes along and tells everyone to leave and threatens at least 4 people with arrest if they didn't go. One fan was escorted out like a criminal for just standing there by the buses, doing nothing wrong and security followed him out, all the way to his car so he wouldn't come back.
No one was doing anything and no one was being rowdy or being rude but security treated the fans as if they were criminals and making threats if they didn't leave. The fans were treated like dirt and all they wanted to do was meet the guys and I know from past experience, the guys would be more than happy to come out and sign autographs and pose for pictures.
Security was rude, making threats and treating people like criminals when they were just standing there waiting to meet their favorite band. I don't think it's too much to ask that security let people hang out so they can meet their favorite band and let them get autographs and pictures. As long as people are being decent, security doesn't have the right to treat people like criminals.
Ocean Coast Security was out of line and completely rude about making people leave. Security at the Clark County Amphitheatre needs to be changed and or train their people to treat others with respect, courtesy and dignity, instead of like criminals and unless someone is causing a problem, should let fans hang out by the buses.
For some fans, this is the only way they will meet their favorite band because they may not be lucky enough to score backstage passes or cannot afford to purchase them like through the Raven Drum Foundation, an organization created by Rick Allen of Def Leppard and is run by him and his wife Lauren.
The Raven Drum foundation is a great charity that helps a great deal of people but most fans cannot afford to bid on them and backstage passes anymore are reserved for fans who win them on the radio or close friends and family of the band. Backstage passes used to be more frequent but with the increasing problem of fanatic fans who basically stalk them, they are scarce and although I understand bands need security to protect them and their privacy, there is such a thing as security crossing the line and on this night, they did cross that line.
Not every fan who comes to a show is going to cause trouble. There is the occasional fan who might get rowdy because maybe they had too much to drink but for the most part, fans are cool and are just interested in having a good time and so is the rowdy fan but on occasion might get a little too excited.
On September 12th, Ocean Coast Security told the fans who were just hanging out to leave or they'd be arrested. One person escorted out, being treated like a criminal even though he did nothing wrong. They threatened others with arrest for just standing there talking and hoping to meet the guys.
It seems to be a crime these days to want an autograph and a picture from your favorite band and the problems with security is only growing steadily worse. A security company I used to work for in Denver Colorado which has branches all over the US is another one that is treating fans with the same disrespect and rudeness and treating the fans like criminals for just wanting to meet with the band. Contemporary Services in Irvine California for example is the same or worse than Ocean Coast Security in Washington.
If you hang around, wanting autographs or pictures, they will treat you as if you committed a felony and you will be escorted off the premises for just simply wanting an autograph and doing nothing wrong and talking to other fans. For doing nothing wrong and just hanging out and wanting an autograph, you get the royal treatment of being threatened with arrest and in some cases, escorted out by them, being treated like a common criminal and treated rudely and with the utmost disrespect.
I would hate to think of what they do to fans who cause trouble like punching someone. Do they get slammed against the ground, tasered and pepper sprayed and perhaps hog tied and shot with rubber bullets. I would think the police have better things to do with their time than go around arresting people who are doing nothing wrong and sending them to jail for just standing in one spot, hoping for an autograph.
The next time you are at the venue Clark County Amphitheatre and security is being a problem, find a policeman and ask him if they have the right to threaten you with arrest for simply wanting to meet the band and tell them how you were treated. In Irvine California, I talked to a policeman about the way they treated me and although they couldn't really do anything, the officer didn't seem to think it was right for them to do that and told me I should report them to their company, which by the way I did and got no results.
Take names and ask for someone in charge and voice your opinion. Only when someone speaks out, will things change and perhaps Ocean Coast Security will be a little less likely to treat you like a common criminal when you've done nothing wrong.
Unless someone is causing trouble, they don't have the right to threaten you. Don't take this from them, speak up and make your voice heard. Silence is the only crime if you don't speak out and defend your rights. They also don't have the right to punish you for someone else's screw up. If someone in the past has caused problems and this is their only reason for being rude, disrespectful and treating you like a criminal, they are in the wrong and should be brought to the attention of someone in charge.
Fans deserve the privelage of being able to hang out at the buses to get to meet their favorite band and shouldn't have to put up with security such as Ocean Coast Security treating them like they need to be locked up somewhere. Security at any venue needs to learn to treat people like human beings with respect and dignity and politeness for it goes a lot further because as it stands now, they are treated like criminals and this is going to affect future events and more and more people won't be coming back to this venue.
Let's stand up for our rights and not let security get away with such behavior. Just because they are security, doesn't make them kings of the universe and I think they need to be brought down a peg or two and show them that just because they wear a uniform, doesn't make them God. Security at such venues are nothing but power hungry, rude, obnoxious idiots who have a lot to learn about how to treat someone. Thank you.
