🚀 go-pugleaf

David J. Sanchez (an658@lafn.org) wrote:

: The story of my West Hollywood experience.


: I enjoy the music of a particular band.  I am on their mailing list and I 
: received a invitation to see them perform Saturday, April 22, at the Love 
: Lounge, presented by Girl Bar.  I called the telephone number listed on 
: the announcement to find out more about the club.  After I listened to 
: the recorded announcement I was concerned that it was a Lesbian Bar and 
: that the patrons might not make me feel welcome.  I had no other means to 
: contact the club or promoters so I called the guitar player in the band.  
: She assured me that I would have no problem as they would not play at any 
: place that would discriminate.  She made it a point to say that they had 
: played homosexual venues previously and they had no problems.  Happy with 
: her answers I made plans to attend the performance.

: I had difficulty finding the club and I ended up at Axis on La Peer.  I 
: was directed to the bar, but I was told that the band I wanted to see was 
: not playing there and that I probably wanted Cafe Luna.  I disregarded 
: this and went to the Love Lounge on Robertson.  When I got there I was 
: told at first that the band was not playing there.  Later they confirmed 
: that indeed they were playing there but I would have to wait 15 minutes 
: for the band to get ready.  As I was hungry and planned on drinking I 
: went to the hamburger stand to get a bite to eat.  There I meet a young 
: man that identified himself as an employee of Love Lounge.  At no time 
: did he mention that I would not be allowed in.  My conversation with him 
: was about the difficulty I had finding the club with the wrong street 
: number.  

: When I went back I lined up to gain admittance and once I got to the 
: front of the line I had my identification ready to present to the 
: bouncer.  He looked at it then at me and said that I could not go in.  I 
: asked why and he said that it was a lesbian club and I was not a 
: lesbian.  As he was saying this a gay man  happened to be leaving the 
: club.  I asked him to get a manager for me to speak with and he said that 
: he had no means of doing so.  He asked me to clear the way and wait on 
: the sidewalk.  I again asked him to get a manager and he relented using a 
: radio to do so.  

: The manager said that I would not be allowed in and that I would have to 
: leave.  I voiced my displeasure at his decision and he proceeded to say 
: that I had a bad attitude and that I had been drinking.  He then said 
: that I should leave the sidewalk and original doorman got in my face and 
: pushed me with his chest.  I was told that if  I didnt leave I would  be 
: detained by force and hurt in the process. 

: Some West Hollywood Sheriffs had been across the street and I asked them 
: about pressing assault and battery charges against the security and they 
: said that I would be subject to what ever they said I did and that I 
: could be arrested too.

: I finally left stopping by Axis to obtain the managers name, he finally 
: gave it to me.

: I called ht bands guitar player when I got home and she called me the 
: next day and she told me that it was the gig from hell.  She said that 
: they later admitted straight males but they were asked to pay an 
: arbitrary $15.00 entrance fee.  She said that they did not expect what 
: happened and that they would never play there again.

: I feel that I am probably as non-homophobic and pro-homosexual as a 
: person could be and I was astonished that I was treated so poorly.  I 
: called a friend and he told me that gay mens clubs also discriminate 
: against women  typically by having a policy against open toed shoes.  To 
: me the West Hollywood community stands for fighting injustice and 
: discrimination. If the shoe was on the other foot and a gay person was 
: not allowed into a strait club for the same reason it would be an instant 
: protest from the gay community.  I have been all over this nation and 
: around this world and I have never experienced such blatant 
: discrimination, even in the southern states.
 Yous should find a good lawer and sue the bastards. What goes around comes
 around too. I don't much like lawers but in this case, they are needed.
 Good luck.
 AMN