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Elbo Room Hosts Nazis, Calls Cops On POC
Elbo Room hosted a show for the band "Death In June" on Tuesday night. This is the 2nd time they've hosted this fascist, white supremacist band, despite protests & community outcry. On Tuesday night, the owner came out & called the police on our comrades, LYING that there was a "crowd of people" "wielding knives": NO ONE that night pulled out any weapons. In today's context, calling the pigs on someone & lying that they are armed & dangerous can literally lead to the death of that person, especially if it's a white person calling the pigs of a POC.
Elbo Room hosted a show for the band "Death In June" on Tuesday night. This is the 2nd time they've hosted this fascist, white supremacist band, despite protests & community outcry. Elbo Room is literally the ONLY venue in all of SF that has had the nerve to facilitate a social space for this explicitly fascist/racist movement to grow.
On Tuesday night, the owner came out & called the police on our comrades, LYING that there was a "crowd of people" "wielding knives": NO ONE that night pulled out any weapons, & not only did he know this, but even a few cops were seen arguing with him for having lied to them. He simply claimed this so that the police response against us would be more intense. The police showed up over 15 deep, even pulling out & cocking shotguns on people.
In today's context, calling the pigs on someone & lying that they are armed & dangerous can literally lead to the death of that person, especially if it's a white person calling the pigs of a POC.
We see this for what it is: a blatant disrespect of our community & a disregard for our struggles and safety.
... Our intention here is to emphasize to y'all that we should not ever that this lightly, or ever forget this repeated disrespect of our community. They see themselves as a "neutral" business, having no accountability or loyalty to us.
Elbo Room was recently facing eviction but avoided this last minute. When they eventually face losing their space again, we plan on showing no support & countering their efforts to remain here.
******
Elbo Room is hosting a fundraiser for the family of Mario Woods, which needs to be moved to another venue immediately. It is disgusting that a business with such a blatant disregard for the lives of black and brown folks be involved in such an event.
More information on Death In June here: http://antifascistnews.net/2015/11/10/nazi-goths-fuck-off-it-is-time-to-shut-down-death-in-june-again/
On Tuesday night, the owner came out & called the police on our comrades, LYING that there was a "crowd of people" "wielding knives": NO ONE that night pulled out any weapons, & not only did he know this, but even a few cops were seen arguing with him for having lied to them. He simply claimed this so that the police response against us would be more intense. The police showed up over 15 deep, even pulling out & cocking shotguns on people.
In today's context, calling the pigs on someone & lying that they are armed & dangerous can literally lead to the death of that person, especially if it's a white person calling the pigs of a POC.
We see this for what it is: a blatant disrespect of our community & a disregard for our struggles and safety.
... Our intention here is to emphasize to y'all that we should not ever that this lightly, or ever forget this repeated disrespect of our community. They see themselves as a "neutral" business, having no accountability or loyalty to us.
Elbo Room was recently facing eviction but avoided this last minute. When they eventually face losing their space again, we plan on showing no support & countering their efforts to remain here.
******
Elbo Room is hosting a fundraiser for the family of Mario Woods, which needs to be moved to another venue immediately. It is disgusting that a business with such a blatant disregard for the lives of black and brown folks be involved in such an event.
More information on Death In June here: http://antifascistnews.net/2015/11/10/nazi-goths-fuck-off-it-is-time-to-shut-down-death-in-june-again/
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Matt Shapiro here, co-owner of the Elbo Room. I feel like I need to chime in here. First of all, Death In June is not a Nazi band, nor a group that preaches hate. While they use controversial imagery and have songs with subject matter that some may find challenging, they are definitely not Nazis, nor hateful. I come from many generations of Jews. Do you think I could look my mother in the eye after booking a Nazi act? As far as the protesters, they were not peaceful. They were not looking to have a discussion. They engaged in violence with one of our customers. One of our security saw one of them brandish a knife. These folks were menacing and looking for trouble. The last thing I ever want to do is call the cops, but we felt there was danger brewing as more of these folks were showing up. So, yes, I called the police to protect our customers and ourselves.
Please feel free to discuss this further with me mattshapiro [at] mac.com
Please feel free to discuss this further with me mattshapiro [at] mac.com
Here is a good essay about the band and why Pearce is a racist/fascist:
Why we don’t like Death in June
https://nycantifa.wordpress.com/2013/09/16/why-we-dont-like-death-in-june/
Why we don’t like Death in June
https://nycantifa.wordpress.com/2013/09/16/why-we-dont-like-death-in-june/
congrats fucko you linked a white nationalist website to prove DIJ isn't fascist? like you gotta be joking. [hey Indybay editors, would linking to white nationalist sites qualify for removal?]
and you, matt, can fuck right off. don't give a fuck about your background, if you wanna stick your head in the sand about DIJ white nationalist position, that's on you. no one ever said the "protesters" were peaceful. no fascists are to be debated. to be honest i WISH your nazi customers* got stabbed. but when it comes down to it, YOU DECIDED THAT HAVING A KNIFE WAS WORTHY OF EXECUTION BY POLICE. YOU COULD HAVE BEEN RESPONSIBLE FOR THE UMPTEENTH BROWN DEATH AT THE HANDS OF THE COPS. everyone that calls the cops is responsible. so fuck you.
*whether or not you believe that DIJ are nazis themselves, it's completely undebatable that DIJ shows attract actual nazi fans. you gave them a space to come together. this is not to be allowed, and i'm glad people were prepared to use a variety of measures to make this happen.
and you, matt, can fuck right off. don't give a fuck about your background, if you wanna stick your head in the sand about DIJ white nationalist position, that's on you. no one ever said the "protesters" were peaceful. no fascists are to be debated. to be honest i WISH your nazi customers* got stabbed. but when it comes down to it, YOU DECIDED THAT HAVING A KNIFE WAS WORTHY OF EXECUTION BY POLICE. YOU COULD HAVE BEEN RESPONSIBLE FOR THE UMPTEENTH BROWN DEATH AT THE HANDS OF THE COPS. everyone that calls the cops is responsible. so fuck you.
*whether or not you believe that DIJ are nazis themselves, it's completely undebatable that DIJ shows attract actual nazi fans. you gave them a space to come together. this is not to be allowed, and i'm glad people were prepared to use a variety of measures to make this happen.
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