Music

London Mayor to Look into Allegations of Racial Discrimination at DSTRKT Nightclub

The mayor of London, Sadiq Khan, has said he will look into accusations of racism at central London nightclub, DSTRKT. The venue has repeatedly been accused of having discriminatory door policies, and has been the object of renewed scrutiny after a woman tweeted early Sunday morning that she saw people being turned away from the club because of their skin color, reports Buzzfeed.

While those tweets have since been deleted, they inspired a postgraduate student named Cindy to tweet an open letter to the mayor about the club’s racist business operations. DSTKT has since denied her statement.

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“Undoubtedly, with each black individual they turn away, DSTRKT London grows bolder in hatred towards a particular race,” Cindy said. “Unchallenged, they stand as a plague within London, more toxic to our community than air pollution. Disrupting the confidence of young people who are simply out to enjoy themselves after a long period of work, study, caring for a relative, aspiring for their futures, and inspiring others to exceed beyond the margins society has placed before them.”

DSTRKT became the target of an organized protest in 2015 after one of its promoters turned people away for being “too dark” and “overweight.” Clubbers have also shared screenshots with Buzzfeed of WhatsApp conversations with alleged DSTRKT promoters using similarly discriminatory language. One of these told a partygoer that “if she was going to bring black girls they needed to be really pretty.”

As part of his response to the situation, Khan has requested that London Night Czar Amy Lamé will raise the issue of racial discrimination with the club. Additionally, Khan has urged clubbers to report incidents of discrimination to the police.

“London is a diverse city, open to people from all backgrounds, races and faiths,” said a spokesperson for London’s City Hall. “We cannot tolerate racist behaviour anywhere in the capital. Sadiq would urge anyone who has witnessed or experienced racial discrimination in London to report it to the police immediately.”

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