Don't Mess With Austin Feminists...

[Content notes: domestic violence "joke"]

I'm sure this past summer already proved that you don't mess with Austin feminists...but some people don't pay attention, so one local bar had to learn that lesson this weekend the hard way.

Mini Bar in downtown Austin had this outside their door:

[Image text: Chalkboard sidewalk sign that reads, "I like my beer like I like my violence: Domestic."]

Before I had even heard that this was up on Friday night, area feminists had rallied (as I saw shared by a few friends on Facebook) and mass called the manager of Mini Bar about this horrific "joke" and Mini Bar responded appropriately on Saturday night:

[Image text: same sign now reads, "$1 of every domestic beer sold will to toward the NCADV in honor of Domestic Violence Awareness Month."]

Mini Bar management also shared that they had terminated the employment of the individual who put up the first sign. Of course, in situations like this, it is much better to never make the mistake than to handle the reaction well, but I will take what I can get. Kudos to the local women who rallied behind sharing and shaming the sign. Too many people that night probably walked by that sign and chuckled among themselves instead of thinking critically about what they had just read. And let us not forget, as the second sign mentions it is National Domestic Violence Awareness month, which makes this "joke" all the more in poor taste.

This small but important event over the weekend highlighted for me how happy I am to live in a city where they type of messaging is not mindlessly tolerated. It's just amazing to me how quickly people rallied and went to the bar management. Of course, I realize that Austin is not perfect, but it really is comforting to know that the feminist community here is so vibrant, vocal, and active--time after time.


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