I sympathise!
If you work as a 'seller' in a 'buyers' market, you will come up against this kind of attitude.
Landlords who offer bands a chance to play are constantly inundated with bands pleadng for a free gig, which makes anyone looking to (gasp!) get paid for playing look like something from another planet - and get treated accordingly.
It simply goes with the territory. These people become immune to simple notions like courtesy and respect because conciously or subconciously, they are aware that they have something you want.
As a freelance music writer with twenty-seven years experience, I have found myself up against the same sort of approach with editors, who almost gasp out loud at the notion that no, I don't want to write for them for free, and yes, I do think my work is worth paying for.
It is an utterly thankless task dealing with these people, they are like drug addicts, only less civil, and less organised.
All I can do is ask you to keep plugging, and confirm that the music industry in all its forms is like this - and we all suffer to the same degree in one area or another.