So I just had to make the really difficult decision to not go to Kumoricon this year. And it fucking sucks.
I was looking forward to con this year and had all the motivation to make a cosplay, go to panels, and had a hotel booked and everything.
Then about 2 weeks ago con staff decided to announce ONE MONTH BEFORE CON that they decided to require kn95 masks for all attendees ages 2 and up. No cloth masks under any circumstances. All when finally, finally everything is starting to calm down in my city and the county this con will be held in.
There was absolutely no reason to require them and no data to back up the concerns. If they had presented concerning data of cases and or hospitalizations here in the county like my employer has done for the last 6 months, I would be more agreeable. If they had even just said 'any mask just don't go without one' I'd be begrudgingly ok with it.
But now because of my sensory processing issues I've been so stressed out trying to prepare myself for a weekend of blisters behind my ears and not being able to breathe, on top of my issues lately of not being able to regulate my body temperature. I'm so stressed out that I said fuck it to the first cosplay I actually budgeted for and was actively working on every day after work for the last two months. My first ever cosplay was going to be this year. And now it won't see the light of day for months to years. Because it will have this negative association.
So thank you Kumoricon staff, I will not be attending your convention this year, especially after you so poorly handled the reaction to your news the last few weeks. If you can get your shit together, maybe I might come back next year but I hope you're happy. Because I'm not the only person making this decision.