Hilton Hotels should be ASHAMED

Chances are, if you've ever eaten at Fran O'Briens Stadium Steak House on a Friday night in the last two and a half years you're a wounded soldier or you know and love someone who is. That's because that's how long the O'Briens, bless them, have been giving out FREE meals to wounded soldiers every Friday night. They intend to keep doing so until the last wounded soldier is released from Bethesda and Walter Reed.

The therapuetic value of these Friday nights for the soldiers is immesurable. Every staff member has gotten special training to deal with the needs of these returning heroes. If a man has lost his jaw, the cook can prepare a special puree so the steak tastes great and the soldier enjoys it. As Margaret, the banquet director, explains, "I've been working here for a long time. We're all like family here. When someone missing their lower jaw finally gets to enjoy a steak, we all cry,"

Fran's is located at the bottom of the Hilton Hotel in Washington D.C. But that's about to change because the Hilton is kicking them out on the street. Not because of giving away free food. Not because they don't pay their bills. No, the Hilton's cruel, heartless action is being done because the hotel chain refuses to abide by the Americans with Disabilities Act.


You see, the Hilton is more concerned about their liability with so many disabled people on their premises than they are about supporting our troops. Supporting our troops is just a catchphrase to rally the flag around the cause, don't you see, and silence all dissent. It doesn't really MEAN that the rich, elite have to actually, you know, SUPPORT our troops. THEY have to worry about more important matters, like making obscene profits.

And damn it all if one of those pesky liberal Big Government Regulations doesn't just stand in their way of doing their patriotic duty to make obscene profits. The Americans with Disabilities Act. You see, THIS is the deal:

The escalator that leads down into Fran O'Briens has been broken since 1998. The O'Briens have been fighting for six years to get that fixed. Hilton promised for years to do so but finally just boarded it up. At that point, the O'Briens asked if a lift could be put in to assist those disabled veterans in wheel chairs. That's when they got the eviction notice.

So how DOES a disabled vet get to eat at the steakhouse now? As 8ackgr0und N015e tells us:

1) You have to go to the lobby of the Capitol Hilton.
2) Then you have to go to the security desk.
3) Then you have to be escorted by the security guard on duty to a coat room.
4) The security guard punches in a code on the key pad and escorts you through the coat room.
5) Then he takes you to "the back of the house," as they call the service area in hotels.
6) Then they escort you to the lift and take you down to the basement.
7) When you get to the bottom, someone from the restaurant has to meet you and then escort you to the restaurant at the other end of the building.

Now you can eat.

A) When you finish your meal, someone from the restaurant has to contact the security desk.
B) Then they have to escort you to the elevator.
C) Then they have to wait until someone from security arrives.
D) Then the person from the security desk escorts you back up to the main floor.
E) Then they take you back through the coat room, again keying in the security codes.

Now you can leave.

A simple question: What if there's a fire?

This clearly is not "equal access" as demanded by the Americans with Disabilities Act. But rather than do the RIGHT thing, rather than do what is required by LAW, Hilton is going to evict the O'Briens, turn their backs on our troops and SAVE A BUCK.

The Hilton management should be ASHAMED.

Friends who DO support our troops would like you to help. This is their plea:

Marty and Hal need our help. For over six months they have been asking the Hilton Management for the terms for renewal of their lease. For over 5 months they were told not to worry they would have the renewal lease in a few weeks. About a month ago the Hilton folks stopped responding to their emails and voice messages for a status report and last week Hal and Marty received a one page eviction notice. No explanation was given. We suspect that at least part of the reason is the Friday night dinner Hal and Marty have been hosting for the last two and a half years. It may be that the Hilton folks are concerned about the increased liability of having so many severely injured and disabled soldiers in their basement each Friday (several have taken falls on the steep stairs at the entrance to Fran's (but no law suits or problems have ensued). It may be that there is very limited and problematic wheelchair access to the restaurant (although no ADA complaints have been filed). The truth
is that we don't know for sure but what we do know is that this is unfair. Unless we can change the minds of the folks at the Hilton Hotel Fran's will be out of business on May 1st and we will not have any place to hold our Friday night dinner for the injured soldiers and marines of Walter Reed and Bethesda Naval Hospitals. If you are so inclined I would like to ask you to call and/or email the following two officials at the Hilton and voice your support for Hal and Marty and express your concern for the reasoning behind this seemingly arbitrary decision.

Please call them and feel free to share this with anyone else who might be willing to call.

Here are the people to call:

*Dan Boyle (212) 838-1558

daniel_a_boyle@hilton.com

Brian Kellaher (202) 393-1000*
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