A well-known Albuquerque bar was accused of racial discrimination after posting a controversial dress code sign in the establishment.
The dress code for the popular Albuquerque Salt Yard includes no jerseys, chains, do-rags, sagging, plain white tees, club suits, belt/bike chains, grills, gang signs, or profanity, according to KRQE.
“The very first thing that came to my mind was racial profiling,” Nikki Archuleta, the BLM Albuquerque Chapter founder said, according to KRQE. "When you look at things like do-rags, when you look at things like, grills everything else on that list pertains to Black culture the way Black folks dress, and that’s something huge in our culture,” Archuleta said, according to KRQE. “And it’s really sad to see they would attribute that to a negative stereotype.”
The dress code was to become effective after 8 p.m. on Fridays and Saturdays.
Many took to social media to respond to the dress code, saying they were putting the Salt Yard on their list of cancellations, and while the sign has been taken down, some patrons said the damage has been done.
“Instead of covering this up with a band-aid we definitely need to fix the deeper surface issue right, and that’s how internalized anti-Blackness is in New Mexico,” Archuleta told KRQE.
The Salt Yard responded to the criticism by issuing the following statement on their Instagram page:
"There was a dress code sign recently posted at our establishment that perpetrated many racial stereotypes against our Black, Indigenous, and People of Color (BIPOC) community. It was immediately removed and will not be replaced. We have zero-tolerance for any type of racism, discrimination, or bullying, yet the sign that was posted clearly shows that there is education and work that needs to be done. Our employment team will be going through diversity and inclusion training, this will be an ongoing education to ensure we do not engage in any type of structural racism from this point forward."
