WASHINGTON -- U Street Music Hall fired a security guard after an incident this weekend where two patrons were asked to leave after dancing in a sexual manner at the highly acclaimed venue where Robyn, who is popular in the LGBT community, was deejaying for two nights.
U Hall co-owner Will Eastman wasn't pleased with what happened on Saturday. "I feel like we let down our community," he told The Huffington Post. "We're working hard to make sure that doesn't happen again."
Eastman and the rest of the clubs staff knew the crowd for Robyn's appearances would be larger than average. To make sure both customers and the neighborhood would be pleased with the experience, the club hired extra bouncers and security through a third-party security firm.
During Robyn's set, two men who were dancing in a sexual manner were asked to leave by a security guard hired by the outside firm. U Hall's own security intervened before anyone was ejected and the venue's general manager fired the contracted guards on the spot.
Upon learning of the incident during a weekly meeting, co-owner Will Eastman, who is also a DJ and was working at the nearby 9:30 Club at the time of the incident, detailed the response in his Facebook post:
Hearing this situation breaks my heart to know that for two men just out having a good time at a night that was all about inclusion and feeling good about life and the future someone representing U Hall acted in a disrespectful and biased manner. U Hall supports everyone's rights and we'll continue to do so as long as we're around. If anyone knows the individuals who were approached by the security guard please ask them to contact me so that I can offer them a personal apology. I would DJ and host a free night at U Hall for them and all their friends and DJs in our community.
This was, according to Eastman, the first incident after years of a successful working relationship with the contracted firm, which Eastman did not name.
Eastman wants to remedy the error and make it clear that the actions of a contracted worker do not reflect the ethos of the club: "I want to thank our friends and supporters. U Hall has been an inclusive club. We want to respect the space. We're very, very fortunate that we have an audience that appreciates diversity and music. I want to guard that because we feel that it can be rare. It's not the mainstream dance club community. I want to thank them and apologize for this experience."
A meeting with the head of the contracted firm and U Streeet Music Hall is scheduled for later this week.