Monday, November 27, 2006

On Shmoozin

This weekend, did an after work thing Friday, Martini’s with the girls at a place called Shmooze. I have posted a little email bellow that I wrote to a local reporter a year ago about Shmooze….and I think it still stands true. Yet every now and then I forget and go.

Hello Chris,

I caught your recent profile on Shmooze in Friday's (April 22) metro and thought I would share my recent experience with you.

Having visited Shmooze a few times in the last month, I have come to identify a certain method in the madness of the infamous 'Shmooze line up.' Getting into Shmooze after 5 is somewhat like getting into the gates of heaven, (to be expected when $2 drinks are on the table.) The disconcerting thing about it is that entry into heaven seems to be a heck of a lot easier if you are Caucasian.

Here is a little story from this Friday. We got into the line up at 5 o'clock and it was moving along. We happened to be waiting for a few people so we had the opportunity to watch the goings on for a while. Oddly the line ground to a complete halt once it got to people of color. In fact, the bouncers actually went through the line tapping certain 'lucky' people, granting them entry. All of these 'lucky' people had one thing in common, they all happened to be Caucasian. After waiting for an hour , we girls ended up being let in. However when we requested the bouncer to let our two male friends through as well, we were pointedly told that it was quite likely that they would have to wait an additional hour to get into the Mecca that is shmooze.

Once inside we were told by another bouncer that if our friends were 'brown' there was really nothing he could do to speed up the process. Perhaps I am naive in wondering how things like this can still happen in our wonderfully multicultural city? Does common decency fly out the window once an overweight man is given a clip board and head set? I understand that Shmooze is a private establishment, which reserves the right to refuse entry to people, but is it acceptable that such entry is subject or rather delayed through a test of skin pigmentation? My advice to all is 'you won't Not get into shmooze if you are of colour, you just have to be prepared to stand in line an extra hour or two, and put up with unnecessary attitude and fleeting looks of disgust from the bouncers.'

Cranky Putz

6 comments:

Island Spice said...

That stuff gets me IRATE!! In Trinidad the same kinda crap goes on. Certain people are let in right away and others are made to stand outside for hours. In fact I hear that one club even had a 'golliwog' night!!! I don't know if its true but the very idea disgusts me.
A sad state of affairs in the year 2006 eh?

Crankyputz said...

I heard that about Trinidad too. Friends tell me its so bad that because I am light skin I would be faulted by some of the women. Tis sad.

Stuff like this really gets me, because people celebrate the fact that Canada is so multi cultutral, yet stuff like this is so prevelant, only you never realise it when your a lighter skin girl. It irked me the way they treated my friends that night.

bitsandgiggles said...

That's just terrible. Did you ever hear back from the reporter?

Crankyputz said...

Oh Sure, he said he felt so bad about it, but it happens....

Shmuck.

Marika said...

I'm seriously shocked...this stuff goes on in Canada? What is it, 1952?

Crankyputz said...

Honestly I was shocked too. You tend not notice things when your of a lighter skin color. And I pretty sure that such things are universal. I know in Dubai, certain clubs give non whites/Arabs a super hard time about getting into clubs. When I was there the fellow was giving us a hard time until I flashed him my good ole Canadian Passport. Ugh! Always leaves me wondering why they don't feature that on those Dubai specials.