Party Bus Staff Tells Woman She Can't Get In Because She's Plus-Sized, She Exposes The Business That Humiliated Her

When you think of a party bus, your mind automatically jumps to good times with friends, right? Though, apparently, some party buses aren’t for everyone and discriminate against you based on your size and weight. If you’re a “big girl,” you’re not welcome... That’s the negative experience that 27-year-old body positivity advocate Fallon Melillo had on a recent trip.

The Texan from San Antonio traveled to Miami Beach in Florida where she and her friends decided to head to a pool party and opted to go on a party bus. However, she was told that she wasn’t allowed on the bus because of her size. Fallon shared the story on TikTok where it immediately went viral. Scroll down to get all the details and let us know what you think of the entire situation in the comments, dear Pandas.

Fallon told Bored Panda that she had a fair amount of TikTok followers and hoped that people would see her initial video and not use that particular party service in Miami. "I never thought so many editors and reporters would reach out to me and want to hear my story. It’s really nice that so many people want to cover this even if I am getting backlash from people who are being rude," she opened up about the huge amount of attention she's been getting online since her story went viral.

The woman wanted to make it very clear that they bought the tickets through a promoter on Facebook, not Eventbrite. "We purchased the tickets at least a week prior. I just so happened to see that ad the night before the pool party. We reached out to Daer [the club] via online chat on their website and they assured us they don’t discriminate against weight. So we went to the party bus being hopeful it would work out since we didn’t actually buy the tickets through Eventbrite and the promoter did not disclose any of that information." You'll find the rest of our interview with Fallon below, so be sure to read on, dear Pandas.

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According to Fallon, some people see themselves as superior to those who are plus-size. "People view 'fat' people as less than. If there were laws protecting bigger people, I think a lot of people in society would view it as accepting their fatness and being 'unhealthy.' If society doesn’t acknowledge it’s a problem then they don’t have to protect individuals. Society has to recognize that this is discrimination for change to happen. Much like with the laws that protect discrimination towards race and LGBTQ communities. Nothing was changed without a fight or a voice."

The body positivity advocate explained to Bored Panda that being bigger or overweight immediately invites nasty comments from others who think it's fine to pass judgment on them.

"When you are bigger people automatically judge you and think you’re lazy and don’t care about your body or health. There are plenty of bigger people who are healthy. Like myself. I recently lost a fair amount of weight over the last year and a half and I’m still plus-size. And some people have genetic conditions, disorders, and diseases that prevent them from losing weight. It’s not black and white and one-dimensional," she pointed out that life is much more nuanced than many people believe.

Fallon also had some spot-on advice on what to do if someone's ever in a similar situation. "My advice is to not let places like this party bus company or even cities like LA, Vegas, and Miami lower your self-esteem because you’re not their idea of beauty. Everyone is beautiful in their own way. No matter your shape or size. Body acceptance is for anyBODY," she said that you have to remain strong in the face of criticism.

"I was humiliated in the moment, but I’ve never been someone to remain quiet. I have always advocated for myself and stuck up for what I believe in. And I encourage others to do the same. However, our society is rooted in such fatphobic hate that it’s really hard for bigger people to speak out in their experiences for fear of judgment—which is exactly what’s happening to me right now. I just want people to know, not everyone is going to like you but you still deserve to exist in your body."

The woman shared that her group of friends was planning to go to a party held at a club called Daer on July 31. However, Fallon spotted that the Spring Break Miami Party Service Bus’ description on Eventbrite listed some fairly disturbing info.

“Sorry, no big girls for this party! The doorman is very strict on appearance. If you have had problems getting into exclusive clubs before, then this is not for you! Please don't waste your time nor ours thinking that we can get you inside if you do not meet the qualifications,” the page said.

Fallon told BuzzFeed’s Alexa Lisitza that she and her friends reached out to the club and they assured them that they don’t discriminate against weight. Naturally, they relaxed and thought that everything would go swimmingly. Unfortunately, that wasn’t the case.

When they got to the party bus, one of the staff members told Fallon’s friend that they wouldn’t allow the 27-year-old plus-size woman on board because of her weight. Fallon felt utterly humiliated and embarrassed.

Fallon told BuzzFeed: “Being turned away in front of other people because of how I look and my size was absolutely humiliating. I was embarrassed and shocked, to say the least. Even though I know I am beautiful on the inside and out, this moment made me feel helpless. This is what every plus-size person fears—being turned away from an event because of how we look."

The group got a refund and found another way to get to the club. Since the incident, the party bus’ Eventbrite page got taken down and replaced by a new event that’s called ‘Open Bar Party + DAER Pool Party (EDM – Electronic Music) A model look is encouraged.’

They also added this bit of discriminatory information in the description: “As much as we would like to welcome everyone, admission to this exclusive event is very selective and we reserve the right [to] deny service."

Fallon believes that the idea that having a model look is encouraged is “disgusting” and discriminatory against plus-size women. She also pointed out that there are plenty of plus-size models now, so the term isn’t as clear-cut as the bus service would like it to be.

The body positivity advocate noted in an update that many Miami party bus services discriminate against women who are bigger. What's more, absolutely nobody from the bus service or the club reached out to Fallon to apologize to her for what happened. With her story going viral, you'd think that they'd do at least that.