Showing posts with label Denver Wrangler. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Denver Wrangler. Show all posts

10/4/13

The Denver Wrangler threatens a drag queen with a lawsuit after denying him entrance

The Denver Wrangler has threatened Vito John Marzano with a lawsuit should he not remove all copies of the video of there staff harassing him on public property (the sidewalk) after they denied him entrance to the bar.  The video makes it very clear the Wrangler staff  bared him because of his gender expression telling him his feet were to big for him to be transgender.. It is unclear if the Denver Wrangler will likewise threaten  media sources but it would be safe to assume they will, given their history of intimidatory behaviour.

This is just the last of many attempts by the Denver Wrangler to coerce Marzano into removing all evidence of the occurrences on that August night.

The Denver Wrangler has also tried to intimidate myself and Cristan Williams who cross posted the original planetransgender article on the TransAdvocate. They have tried unsuccessfully to have blogger shut down planetransgender but they did succeed in getting facebook to censor the original article. Facebook sent me a message that the original article contained 'contaminated' links. I have published and posted most of the 2000 odd planetransgender articles on facebook, and that one, just that one post has a infected link? Not according to Norton safe site.

If the Denver Wrangler didn't discriminate against Vito John Marzano why are they so focused on removing the video evidence prior to the DORA hearing. If the Denver Wrangler is blameless as they claim, why are the so intent scouring the Internet clean of all evidence of that incident prior to the Civil rights hearing?

Wouldn't it be to there benefit if they were publicly exonerated by Colorado Civil Rights Division? Or is it that they know they are in the wrong and are attempting to get rid of the evidence?

The letter sent by a lawyer retained by the Denver Wrangler to Vito John Marzano:


"This is a clear intimidation tactic. The lawyer and I both know that I have not said anything which has not been backed up with screen shots or video. About the video, I encourage everyone to mute the sound (as to not get distracted) and look closely at the video. You will see that I am standing in front of the metal barricade, which ends right where the sidewalk begins. The video was filmed on a public sidewalk. Furthermore, my phone was up the entire time. It was quite obvious I was filming. Being as we were on a public sidewalk holding my phone up and saying things like "I cannot wait to post this on the internet" I can safely conclude there was no presumption of privacy. Moving on, if the Wrangler is so comfortable in their position, why are they trying to destroy the evidence?
There is a simple answer to all this- change your ID policy. Stop the discrimination. Treat all of your patrons equally and with dignity. Once that happens, I will gladly dismantle the website, video, and boycott. Until then, I have not done anything illegal and this will continue.


The video of the Wrangler staff denying Marzano access to public accommodations:





Source Denver post.com: Pete Meersman, president and CEO of the Colorado Restaurant Association, said he understands the liquor-license side of the law better than the discrimination laws but sees the conflict that businesses face.
"This was a new situation that I had not heard of before," Meersman said. "The ultimate dilemma is doing one thing to stay in compliance with the law that gets you out of compliance with another

Vito Marzano's driver's license ( | )
law."
Management at the Wrangler could not be reached for comment, but a video of the altercation posted by Marzano to YouTube — which has since been taken down — outlines the bar staff's reasoning: Gender identity must match a person's ID gender.
"The problem here is the application of a blanket rule that discriminates against a particular class of people based on their gender nonconformity," said Mari Newman, a Denver-based civil-rights attorney. "While I acknowledge the bar's legitimate interest in not running afoul of liquor licensing, this, by its term, is not a legal way to accomplish that goal."
Checking IDs is not required by law but is the only way bars and restaurants have to verify a customer's age. Subsequently, there is no standardized method for comparing a person's ID with their physical appearance — those policies are determined and set by the business owners.

The statement attached to Mr. Marzano's  DORA complaint



9/3/13

Watch: Denver Wrangler gay bar Deny Entry To a Drag Queen Telling Him He's Not Transgender

Got this message via Facebook from Jed Rosenberg of the Denver Wrangler demanding I take a picture down which was being used under the "Fair Use"  exception to the copyright law. New images courtesy of the creative geniuses at Transadvocate where this is cross posted.


Fair Use:
Commentary, Criticism, Parody. 

                                                                                           
My name is Jed Rosenberg and I'm an online marketing consultant for the Denver Wrangler. I couldn't find an email for you, so I'm writing you today via Facebook to request the removal of an image that appears on the blog site, http://planetransgender.blogspot.com/, specifically on your authored blog article, "Watch: Denver Wrangler gay bar Deny Entry To a Drag Queen Telling Him He's Not Transgender" (http://planetransgender.blogspot.com/2013/09/watch-denver-wrangler-gay-bar-deny.html). The name of the file is "lugg.png"
The Denver Wrangler did not give you permission to use the image on your blog and violates their legal rights. Could you please take it down? I wanted to ask you first before submitting a report to Blogger.
Also, this image appears in your Facebook images and timeline in a related post on September 3, 2013. Can you please remove that image as well?

As time goes on more people people are speaking up about the Wranglers history. This is a screen grab from the Wranglers website from around 2007 according to Daniel Gonzales who posted it to Boycott the Denver Wrangler facebook page. This image has since been removed from the Denver Wrangler website.



Update 9/12/13The Denver Wrangler has pressured You Tube into sending a privacy statement to Vito, threatening to take the video down. ANYONE who has tried to get youtube to respond to a request to review videos knows what it means to be frustrated.

Vito posted this to the Boycott Denver Wrangler Facebook page:

The Wrangler is shaking! I just got a YouTube Privacy Violation threat. Even though they knew they were being videotaped, even though it was on a public sidewalk, even though I clearly state I'm uploading the video, even though it has been up for days, it seems that as this people become aware the Wrangler continues its systematic policy of retaliation.

Facebook is not letting me post this on saying it is a 'security' risk. Out of the 2100 blogspot articles I have posted on facebook THIS ONE post is a security risk?



Now back to the original story......



Drag artist Vito John Marzano was denied admittance to the Denver Bear bar the Wrangler because according to the manager his license did not match his gender expression. This was in direct violation of the Colorado Department of regulatory agencies (Dora) Public Accommodations Discrimination policy posted below.



This was not the first time the Wrangler has been called out on transphobia. Autumn Sandeen posted about this bar while while trying to find a trans friendly watering hole for a upcoming visit to Denver on Pams House Blend in 2008.



The Wrangler has since removed that discrimination policy from their website but obviously they still adhere to it in thought word and deed.

Vito John Marzano posted this to the facebook group "Boycott the Denver Wrangler":
"The Denver Wrangler has a well documented history of discriminating against people whose perceived gender identity on their ID does not match how they present."

"I did not know this until the night of 8/31, when I went there in Drag after a drag pageant at Hamburger Mary's. I was denied entry for the above stated policy by General Manager Phil and the Assistant Manager Pat."

The Denver Wrangler managed to get Youtube to take the video of them ejecting Vido :(


 


But you can still watch it on Vimeo :)


Wrangler Video from Vito Marzano on Vimeo.


Vito John Marzano continues:
"I pointed out that Colorado has an anti-discrimination law against transphobia, their response is that I am not trans. I asked how would they know the difference and they tried to say the first step for any trans individual is to get a new ID from the state. I then got into a four minute argument with them (all on video) about this discriminatory policy. Their response was very clear: no drag queens, no trans (unless your ID matches your gender identity), and nobody who doesn't adhere to their myopic view of masculinity. I also want to point out that after this incident, I went into three different bars (two of which are straight) with my ID and asked the bartender if they would serve me. They were shocked I was even asking and more shocked that a gay bar on Denver would do this. Then women started telling me how they are discriminated and treated horribly by the Denver Wrangler when they have gone with their friends."

"This entire policy is bullshit. Not only is drag an integral part of LGBT culture, our trans- and genderqueer kin should not be denied entry into an established whose primary function is to take money from the LGBT community. I am also going to point out that that Denver Wrangler has been previously challenged. Their "policy" was taken off their website. It may not be on their website but it is still going strong and it is enforced by the bar staff."

"The LGBT community needs to come together and fight any form of discrimination, even if it comes from our own community. Boycott the Denver Wrangler until they treat all of their patrons equally."
Update 9/5/13 

The Wrangler Retaliates and threatens allies and boyfriends on the Rush Rugby Team. A email forwarded to me by Vito John Marzano.



Colorado Law prohibits discrimination in places of public accommodation based on certain protected classes (characteristics). Examples of prohibited discriminatory practices include: terms of service; denial of full and equal service; intimidation; failure to accommodate; access; conditions; privileges; advertising; and retaliation. A place of public accommodation can be a: bar; restaurant; financial institution; school or educational institution; health club; theater; hospital; museum or zoo; hotel or motel; public club; retail store; medical clinic; public transportation; nursing home; recreational facility or park; and library.

Colorado law prohibits discrimination in places of public accommodation based on actual or perceived sexual orientation. By legal definition, sexual orientation means heterosexuality, homosexuality (lesbian or gay), bisexuality, and transgender status. Transgender status means a gender identity or gender expression that differs from societal expectations based on gender assigned at birth.

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