Written By: Tierra Francois and Jordan Barela
The sociology club is raising the bar for its campaign against discrimination.
The sociology club has an ongoing petition for three Remerton Bars to remove their dress code signs. Flip Flops, Mulligans and Milltown are the bars with the signs that display phrases such as “No Sagging,” “No Grills,” and “No Baggy Clothes.”
The sociology club believes the signs are discriminatory, particularly towards the stereotype of black males.
“A proper dress code should be one that does not single out one specific race or group within its guidelines, which in this case, it does in the majority of the code,” Jarrett Wilson, co-president of the sociology club, said.
In total, the club has garnered 526 signatures to date.
Along with the petition, the sociology club has a campaign called “Diversity, Not Dress Code.”
According to Wilson, members of the sociology club have talked to many black male students who were turned away for violating the dress code.
The club also has documentation of white males being admitted into the bars, while violating the dress code displayed outside the bar. The club does not have documentation of the bars turning away black males in violation of the dress code.
The sociology club did not release the documentation to The Spectator by publication date.
According to Wilson, the club has received support from some of the other local bars. Wilson also stated by email that the club is planning to present their petition to the three bars. The club will also take whatever they deem to be the necessary action if the bars do not remove the signs.
The Spectator has contacted the bars numerous times, but there has been no response.
Students however, are siding with the sociology club.
“I totally agree with the sociology club and will gladly sign the petition,” Chantel Durden, a VSU student, said. “I have seen the people at the bars myself turn people around that I thought were dressed nicely.”
One student has completely abandoned one of the college bars.
“My boyfriend and I just completely stopped going to Milltown,” Alexis Johnson, another VSU student, said.
According to Johnson, Milltown denied entry to her boyfriend because his shirt had camouflage in its design. After being denied entry, Johnson stated that the security guard let a Caucasian male with sagging camouflage shorts in the bar. Johnson approached the security guard, but was given no explanation as to why her boyfriend was asked to leave.
Wilson believes that the campaign will address the larger issue of racial discrimination.
“The culture of the deep south must be changed at some point for us to be able to live in a society completely free of hatred and discernment, and this campaign makes a small step towards that effort,” Wilson said.
I can see the concern with why some believe this, but honestly what is wrong with dressing decent. Nobody wants to see boxers or underwear or another male/female no matter what race the person is. The dress codes do not target one specific group. All races do everything on those dress codes. Also people target milltown and mulligans about this issue but really, come on! These bars are the most diverse bars on the strip. There are plenty of bars/clubs in bigger cities that won’t even let you in, which includes sagging, unless you are wearing something dressy. Does this mean they are raciest? No its just call public decency and a owner who wants a dress code. If people want a bar or club that promotes public indecency then they are more than welcome to open one up. Just my view.
Great work, Mr. Wilson and the VSU Sociology Club! The differential treatment of white and black customers at these business establishments is discrimiatory and should not be tolerated. I hope the business owners come to their senses and do the right thing.
While I’m not arguing the fact that “dress codes” like this tend to target a certain demographic, this article does very little to enhance or propel the conversation. The club has “documentation?” Like, police reports or just complaints from those who weren’t let in? Couldn’t contact the bar owners? Go to the bar. Talk to the bouncers. Talk to people who love the code. Exhaust all avenues to get the other side in order to make the argument complete (you’ll be surprised what it can do for your agenda). What you have a is a one-sided soap box article that is only going to polarize readers, not become a catalyst for change. It’s obvious y’all have a vested (and likely warranted) issue with this, so give it its due. One-sourced articles get buried in professional journalism — for good reason.