Bouncers and the Bum's Rush - Chris "Preach" Smith

The recent brutal beatdown that took place outside of the 40/40
club in Atlantic City this past weekend has once again sparked
discussion about the excessive force used by bouncers at these
nightclubs. The bouncer basically is the first and last line of
defense at these establishments and quite possibly is the most
hated facet of them. Unless the bartender isn't on point with
the drinks. Jay-Z will face a tremendous amount of heat being
that it's his club and such an incident combined with certain
events in his past gives critics more leeway to apply the 'thug'
label. The nine bouncers in the videotaped assault will just be
more reason for bouncers to be looked on with disgust.

Everyone has at least one story about dealing with a difficult
bouncer. To be honest, there are some of them who frankly
speaking are outright jackasses in sensible shoes. I remember
being in a tiny lounge spot somewhere on the Lower East Side
once with a group of people on a Friday night a few years back.
The place was packed to capacity. After a few minutes, I saw
someone on their way out having a conversation with an older
cat, so I went past and stepped outside to breathe. Once I
felt better, I made my way to the door. And found an arm
outstretched in front of me accompanied by a look of disgust.

'Is there a problem?' I asked.

'C'mon man, you walked past me and didn't even ask if you
could go back in.' he responded. He was a brother, with a few
waves in his hair and middle aged dressed in a sweater and
slacks. 'You can't go back in.' He didn't even look at me
which made me pissed.

'You never told me you were a bouncer when I walked past
you?! That makes no sense!' I replied. 'Regardless, you're
not getting back in.' he sniffed. Effin' bum-ass bidge, I thought
as I walked away. I saw no sense in extending the argument.
But it taught me a lesson...check the bouncer and get the
story straight on the rules. Because some of them don't know
how to do their jobs or don't want to. And those are the ones
who cause these crazy situations to happen, those mental
midgets with

That's not to say that all bouncers are like that. On the flipside,
a lot of them have been professional if not outgoing. The main
reason being is that they have an extremely tough job. It's not
all muscle. They have to instantly gauge reactions and moods.
They have to maintain order in an environment that thrives
on the consumption of alcohol...and when illegal drug use by
partygoers gets into the mix, that makes it harder. Being the
gatekeeper is rough, and in a few cases fatal. I've been asked
a few times to be a bouncer and I've flat-out refused. I don't
envy anyone in that role. While I won't be naive and say that
the club life isn't potentially dangerous, I do feel that there
should be a training program setup for doormen if there isn't
one already where you balance etiquette with situation
management. No one wants the bum's rush from someone
who's more of a nuisance than they are.