Gay venues wrongly targeted: ACON
The 2am lockout of four gay venues will likely increase alcohol-related assaults against gay and lesbian people and could harm successes in keeping HIV rates low in NSW, ACON has warned.
ACON president Mark Orr argued including gay venues in the lockout was akin to blaming the victim, when most violence in and around Oxford St is perpetrated by people tanked up with their mates from somewhere else.
For some reason the alcohol seems to give them permission to act out their homophobic feelings, and it is not uncommon for someone to talk up a stranger (a gay man) in a queue outside a nightclub and punch him in the face, Orr wrote to Nathan Rees.
When this occurs, the violence statistics are counted against that licensed venue which gives an inaccurate picture about which are in fact problem venues.
Reports from NSW Police and the Attorney General’s Department going back over a decade have showed a systemic problem of violence against patrons of gay venues, he said, but there were few places for a gay man or lesbian to meet people like themselves.
With one stroke of a pen, Premier, you have created a 2am lockout in almost half the GLBT community licensed venues in central Sydney.
Having limited venues that are accessible to our community after 2am will leave many people on the street with the very real possibility that they will be more susceptible to violence than is currently the case, rather than less so, which was the intent of this reform.
Gay and lesbian venues played in promoting HIV and STI prevention and drug and alcohol education campaigns, Orr added. Venue operators had been working with ACON and the ongoing work to address problems in the Oxford St and Darlinghurst area.
It is disappointing that this work, including a voluntary agreement from all venue operators in the area to a trial lockout between 6am and 9am, has been undercut by the measures imposed by the Government.
Good point James P. I agree with you totally. I do think that what is desperately needed is a person (backed by all orgs’) who just wont go away. Someone who is there, in the face of the Government constantly drawing attention to a serious issue. This Government is vote hungry and a personality that appeals to mainstream as well as the Gay communities could constantly be attacking the Government in carefully worded statements. Canvas mainstream press, if they want to use Gay icons to draw ratings to their programs, then let them pay for the right to do so, by getting air time where these issues can be raised, and i don’t mean 10 or 11 pm. Straight community is out there and ready to listen between 5pm to 8pm, Someone that can speak and is camera friendly, getting the message across is a must do. Have them popping up every time an issue arises.
By the way I think James P you have a wonderful and practical subject that should be taken to Ministerial level. Why are there no emergency points and irrespective of the answer, when are they coming.
People get savagely attacked in the streets and parks. People go to bars. Let’s close down the bars to stop people getting attacked in the streets and parks. Wait, do those people drive cars, take taxis and eat luke-warm pizza? We should ban those things too.
Emptying the city at night to create dead zones is no way to make a safer environment.
Did anyone consider emergency points around Oxford St with speaker-phones connected to the Police station, like they have on trains?
How do the clubs provide revenue for ACON? As far as i’m aware, ACON doesn’t get any financial support from venues. If anything Acon may get some publicity, but what’s wrong with publicising an organisation that works for the Queer community?
the clubs are also a great revenue source for ACON.
These imposed measures indicate a level of ignorance and community awareness by the government that we cannot overlook!
Did government go out to the “problem” areas latenight/morning and checkout which “problem” venues have the “problem” crowds hanging around outside? If that step had been taken then the imposed measures would have applied to a diferent set of venues … ignorance is not bliss!!!!
Some of these venues should be closed down completely!!!