Glendale Chocolate Affair - Looking for Criminals?

The promoters are subjecting their vendors to a background check to see if they are criminals and actually forcing them to pay them $60 for the favor. I recently posted this to one of my other blogs, Events and Festivals and I decided that we need more exposure on this. This fee is on top of the $475 they are charging for spaces at the Glendale Chocolate Affair.

Glendale Chocolate Affair. Vendor Applications I was just looking through a number of event listings on a website and I noticed that vendors are forced to pay $60 for a 'background check fee.' They are charging $450.00 for an Arts and Crafts booth...at least they supply the booth, but that, my friends is pretty darn high, especially in this life and times.

Let's dwell on that $60 fee for a background check for a few seconds. I am certain that vendors will have to provide their SSN, Drivers License Number and probably some other material for them to run a trace on. Now, here ya go. We have somebody paying $475 for a 10x10 spot to sell their artwork, Do you think that somebody selling their lovely artwork at this show should be subjected to having a police check on them looking for warrants, etc. Do you really think these people are criminals. Only reason these people are not objecting is that they need to make money and moreso, enjoy displaying their artwork for people to see.

These individuals are being treated like criminals. A year ago, I (and several other vendors) had to shell out $25 for a 'police permit' which is the same thing and I felt that my rights were violated. Seriously, do they consider vendors to be criminals? That would piss me off if I was extorted like that for $60 in order to run a background check on me.

I know for darn sure this does not cost $60 and I find this to be a slap in the face of vendors. What are they doing.....feeding the person a nice steak dinner while that person sits at his computer and enters the person's name into some software. They do not have the right to force vendors to fork over the $60. Seems to me that the promoters of this event are the real criminals. I have nothing to do with this event, but I read about it and I am perturbed and I really frown over things like this. Vendors should voice their disapproval over this and demand their $60 money back. Sorry. Not right by any standards. Heck, these people could get away with charging vendors a $50 bathroom /porta pottie fee and get away with it.