Officials: Raid impact wonÂ’t last
Earlier this summer, Fort Worth was in the news for all the wrong reasons.
Coinciding with the 40th anniversary of New YorkÂ’s Stonewall riots, which helped launch the first major gay rights movement, officers from the Texas Alcoholic Beverage Commission and Fort Worth Police Department raided a week-old gay bar June 28 on the cityÂ’s Near Southside, arrested six patrons for public intoxication, one of whom was sent to the hospital with serious head injuries, and caused quite a stir in the process.
Within a week, Fort Worth had made the New York Times, Los Angeles Times, The Atlantic magazine, The Huffington Post and many more news organizations large and small nationwide. Readers’ comments on Web sites derided the city as full of backward, redneck “Bubbas” who had equal disdain for Jews, Catholics, gays and blacks.
The raid on the Rainbow Lounge, located on South Jennings Avenue, prompted accusations aplenty of anti-gay behavior on the part of the TABC and FWPD, and led Fort Worth Police Chief Jeffrey Halstead to appoint Officer Sara Straten to act as liaison between the force and the GLBT, or gay-lesbian-bisexual-transgender, community. Investigations were launched on all sides and Mayor Mike Moncrief requested the U.S. attorneyÂ’s office also conduct an independent investigation.
All of a sudden, city officials, residents and businesses had a lot of explaining to do.
City Council member Kathleen Hicks, whose District 8 includes the Rainbow Lounge, said she hopes the incident doesnÂ’t change Fort WorthÂ’s reputation for the worse, but added only time will tell.
“I think obviously anyway you look at it, it was an unfortunate event but the fact that we’re all trying to work in concert to learn from it and make something positive from it shows [the city’s commitment],” she said. “We’re not rushing to judgment and that can only be seen as a positive.
“My hope is that people will feel even more comfortable knowing that Fort Worth is moving forward in an inclusive manner,” she added. “We want each of our 720,000 residents to feel comfortable and visitors to feel comfortable as well.”
From a public relations standpoint, one local executive said itÂ’s best for city officials to let the investigations wrap up, and then address the situation.
“At this stage, shut up,” said Allen Wallach, CEO of Concussion High Impact Communications. “Don’t add fuel to the fire with town hall meetings, a ‘beer summit’ or other grandstanding tactics that can only exacerbate the situation. Pandering will only do harm at this point. Time will allow emotions to cool so that productive, logical steps can continue.”
Though he recommends the silent treatment for the moment, itÂ’s important the city follows through with the investigations and keeps interested parties knowledgeable of whatÂ’s going on. In any public relations nightmare, remember to educate, he said.
“Be prepared to handle further inquiries by media and organizations in an honest, yet positive way,” Wallach said. “Deal with the issue head on without sugar coating it and remind that this one isolated incident does not characterize Fort Worth. History is on our side, showing a colorful heritage of diversity and inclusiveness – from Hell’s Half Acre to world-class culture and a growing reputation as ‘Funkytown’ – that cannot be easily undone.”
Former journalist and frequent candidate for public office Tracey Smith doesnÂ’t think the incident has changed how Tarrant County residents view their community, likely because the TABC officersÂ’ actions are seen as a one-time or rare occurrence.
“I don’t think it’s going to hurt us any as far as business reputation, as a place to do business,” Smith said. “There are always people who mistreat other people and I don’t think what happened is a reflection of the Fort Worth Police Department, maybe the Texas Alcoholic Beverage Commission because they have some other instances where they went in places and things got out of hand.”
Indeed, the TABC issued a report July 31 that outlined, in 32 pages, exactly what happened during the late-June incident. As a result, disciplinary actions are pending against three TABC agents who reportedly violated commission policies. Alleged wrongdoing against agents included conducting a joint operation with the FWPD without approval; wearing unapproved attire; failure to report use of force in the arrests of George Armstrong and Chad Gibson, the individual sent to the hospital; and other violations.
“It looks like it’s going to affect the law enforcement people,” Smith said, “they’ll probably think twice before going in there again.”
While Smith believes the way Fort Worth views itself hasnÂ’t changed, the rest of the world might see it as one more crazy happening in the Lone Star State.
“They look at it like, ‘Those gung-ho Texans got out of hand,’ like cowboys riding into town shooting their guns off down Main Street in the old days,” he said. “A lot of extreme things that happen in Texas are just accepted by the rest of people in the world as ‘Well, it’s just those people.’”
A Fort Worth Chamber of Commerce spokeswoman said the organization has followed the incident and subsequent developments, but is reserving comment until all relevant investigations are completed and reviewed. The spokeswoman also said some members have called to talk about the incident, but that the Rainbow Lounge raid hasnÂ’t been a big topic so far.
Representatives from two North Texas GLBT groups did not return multiple phone calls for comment.
“People are ready to move forward,” Hicks said, “as am I.”
