Po-Po ruin another party...

Last night, I paid $20 for a 20-min party in a huge two-story restaurant with a wrap around verandah. The cops came in shortly after midnight and decided that we had too many people inside. It was a hard concept to follow considering that the dance floor was empty. We were waiting for the party to start! I must not forget to point out that this party is in Greensboro. And the second notable fact: This black-owned venue is throwing a hip-hop party in a white neighborhood. By midnight its neighbors are fast asleep with visions of stock dividends dancing through their heads.

So the cops come in and tell the DJ to stop the music. I'm guessing that the cops told the owner/promoters that we were at capacity and they we're all like, "That's impossible! This place is nearly empty!" So the cops came up with a clever plan to make EVERYONE leave the club and count them as they walk back in. Of course this means that people from the inside will mix with the people who are outside waiting to get in, but the plan was solid aside from that. It takes forever to get people who just paid $20-$40 to understand that the party isn't over, but they have to get out. Then the local hip hop station was throwing the party so all of their staff decided to stay inside, and it took time for the cops to figure out how to count them. In the end they herded us into the bar area like cattle, counting us as we entered. At first that was perfect, "I was on my way to the bar anyway!" I joked. But the bar wouldn't even serve us water. Some party.

An hour later, with almost everyone standing outside, the cops decide that the party is over. They clear the parking lot by looking into cars with flashlights and chasing down people who leave too fast. I wonder how many drunk drivers we could prevent if police went around shutting down parties and forcing people to drive home earlier than expected..hmmm.

The sad part is that everyone lost their money and the owner lost his credibility. The same thing happened to him on Friday night. The restaurants capacity is 389 with tables and without tables it's still 389 for some reason. And the party was a birthday celebration that never got off the ground. The birthday dude had just walked in with a cake when the music was shut off. Sad, sad, sad. The law is the law, but from what I hear and what I've seen, many venues surpass their capacity without becoming deadly fire traps.

For some reason this reminds me of the 1979 Greensboro Shootouts that came back into the news last month. It seems like a leap, but they connect for me because both symbolize the way that racism is accepted or overlooked by many people in this community. In my opinon, race often plays a role in the way problems are perceived and solved.

In 1979, when KKK and American Nazi members opened fire on union members at a rally in the projects, several news teams were there filming. The shooters have been acquitted twice. Learn more at the links below.

http://www.gtcrp.org/context.asp
http://www.charlotte.com/mld/observer/news/local/12152428.htm


Image: Eric Shansby