Tuesday, July 12

Badlands Bias

Notice that Black faces are prominently displayed on this ad for Badlands? Well, that could be because the bar in San Francisco's Castro district has been singled out for racial prejudice: the bar is charged with putting up barriers to entry for African Americans patrons and job applicants. The owner of Badlands, Les Natali, is also the proprietor of several other Castro restaurants and bars, including the Pendulum, located across the street from Badlands, which specifically caters to an African American crowd. After protests and grievances filed with the city, the bar owner has agreed to mediation by former mayor Willie Brown.

The SF Chronicle article also points out one related fact, "During 2003, the only photographs of nonwhite men published in Out magazine -- a leading gay publication -- were of Latino musicians and black men in advertisements for HIV and AIDS medication." John, didn't you ask me just yesterday if anyone found Out to be a relevant publication anymore?