The Met’s value is not universal: it reflects its affluent, largely white, founders and donors.
For first-time visitors outside typical museum demographics, the cost of entry can go far beyond ticket price:
Beyond additional costs — such as transportation, childcare, and time diverted from paid or domestic work — there is the labor of investing in a space without knowing if it’s invested in you.
This includes navigating the cultural codes of a historically white institution, viewing one’s culture through a western gaze, as well as submitting to a bag search and guard surveillance.
Read more about this.
A flat $25 admission fee will cut off communities that the Met seeks to serve — especially marginalized and low-income out-of-state visitors and undocumented individuals.
The Met needs the time, insight, and labor of these communities in order to fulfill its commitment to “
reach out to the widest possible audience in a spirit of inclusiveness.” Sliding scale pricing recognizes these unaccounted costs and contributions, moving toward a more inclusive and equitable system.*
*To fully offset the unaccounted cost and labor for potential visitors who are most marginalized, the Met would need to pay them to attend. See
Look At Art. Get Paid.