![A Facebook screenshot shows a Nazi salute by a man in a KKK costume (via Nisha Damji)](https://brixtonblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/11/QH21-175x300.jpg)
KKK costumes and Nazi salutes are usually associated with the deep south in America, not south London.
But a Brixton pub has come under fire after its Halloween extravaganza featured a medley of controversial imagery.
When Nisha Damji slammed the Queen’s Head in a discussion with friends on Facebook, the official account (which she is “friends” with) allegedly responded by calling her “bitch” and telling her to “suck my d*ck”.
Nisha told Brixton Blog: “To be called a bitch and to be threatened with sexual violence is utterly appalling. As well as the deeply offensive costumes and blackface, one of them gave the Nazi salute. It’s not cool or edgy. It’s is totally unacceptable in 2014.”
The Queen’s Head have not responded to a request for a comment.
![Nisha said she was 'appalled' at the response she received from the Brixton pub.](https://brixtonblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/11/nisha-365x610.jpg)
![The images appear to show racist caricatures at the pub's Halloween party (screenshots via Nisha Damji)](https://brixtonblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/11/QH1-358x610.jpg)
The few things authentic left in your soulless hole of a city are been bullied down by clowns, middle class nothing better to do, sad bastards willing to accept a media witch hunt and climb on with there faux PC rants, those who believe offence was given, may I politely suggest that you fuckin grow up! Go there meet the mixed race clientele and realise its one of the few real pubs you got truly.
It looks as though the “benefits” of gentrification and the people it has brought to Brixton with it are becoming apparent.
Sanctimonious, self-righteous, bourgeois twats as far as the eyes can see. Take your puritanical PC tyranny and shove it where the sun don’t shine… oh wait… is that a threat of sexual violence? F*ck the f*ck off and take your f*cking hat with you.
This furore has nothing to do with racism or sexism and everything to do with reinforcing a certain type of person’s pathetic need for moral superiority and approval from the self-styled vigilantes of what is and is not socially acceptable.
Crap like this is what got Stephen Colbert’s show cancelled. Moronic, fake social progressives making real social progressives looks dumb. There are real problems out there that we could be dealing with but instead we get non-events like this distracting us…. one might even think this was a deliberate attempt to derail genuine political activism.
Should we next be expecting a baying mob with pitchforks and flaming torches to show up?
I hope this post offended someone, it was absolutely supposed to.
Whatever the guys in queens head are actually dicks so what? Nisha, threatened with sexual violence? Really, seriously f*ck off
Political Correctness Training is not a substitute for Critical Analysis Training…
These costumes were in bad taste, but the whole ‘stamp on things’ ethos and M.O. of Political Correctness is ALSO, and more pervasively in very bad taste.
What this woman is saying, is that she’s superior to the whole of the clientele and staff of the Queen’s Head. Now this may be true, it’s certainly possible, but why?
Many people frequent the Queen’s Head, for the atmosphere amongst other things – it’s not gentrified, and that’s GREAT. Races and other potential divisions in society actually MIX here. People are, for ONCE, thank GOD, not uptight here. London is a soulless hell-hole a lot of the time, and these people have a clue about how to improve upon that. Allow them their little mistakes.
Out of the whole of the Queen’s Head clientele and staff (who’re probably quite a neat split of 50/50 white and black/mixed-race, on any given night, with white people frequently in the minority most likely) – is this woman saying that they are ALL stupid or ignorant of history? Do you REALLY think this is likely?
Perhaps they were in on the joke or if not a joke, the point that was being made.
Sorry if someone’s closed-logic political correctness programming over-rode their appreciation of this role-reversal.
Best not watch Chappelle’s Show, then… but it is sharp and it IS funny.
Maybe these guys are thick as shit and not sharp and not funny, but perhaps they were working along the same lines – trying to both draw attention to a horrible truth AND make light of it at the same time.
I don’t know, I wasn’t there… but it’s a shame that woman has an axe to grind.
It’s not “women speak out on things on social media the types of threat they get are of a sexual nature”. That’s just lumping this in with those who abuse women in sexual terms.
Realise, that in some cultures, saying “suck my dick” is THE utter disparaging remark, only reserved for those, male OR female, who need pulling off the pedestal they’ve put themselves on, and FAST.
This also serves to show to the usual fools who love to over-share online, that camera-phone lurkers, Facebook whores and privacy are also an issue.
Since this woman complainant wasn’t anywhere near this pub and merely saw the photos, where a black and white man are doing a role-reversal (in bad taste, but at least sort of putting each other in the opposite shoes, which is less moronic than it appears). Maybe there was a wider context? Maybe not!
One of these two parties seems to show capability for abstract thought. Not sure if it’s the odd couple or the complainant, though… Only they know in their hearts.
Reading material:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mens_rea
Queens Head Accounts: –
https://www.zauba.com/companyuk/QUEENS-HEAD-BRIXTON-HOLDINGS-LIMITED/07702087/
If it is not a freehouse, there should be a campaign against the pub leasing company to end the lease.
It sounds like a right dive, and the “landlord” doesn’t give a shit.
I think his comments on the radio proved what a prat he is.
@steve, yes a put down that is a threat of sexual violence which it always has been in any context. this is exactly why stuff like this needs to be shared as people think its acceptable racism and sexism are never acceptable in ANY context
@ Jay
I can, and I did.
I took it to be a put down.
Are you trying to tell me you’ve never heard that phrase used in such a context? Not even in films?
No one has any intent of a. letting or b. making anyone do that.
She should grow up and tell the person in no uncertain terms to F*** OFF.
It was a keyboard warrior spouting off as he was too dumb to defend his point.
Which, kind of makes her the victor in the original argument.
Until such time anyone can prove to me otherwise I shall continue to think what I think and get on with my day.
Have a good one.
This place is a TOTAL dive. I don’t understand how they stay open. Last time I was in there (about a year ago), the barman was so drunk he could barely serve me. There was a period when it was OK – I even had food there once – but those days are long gone.
Although I often complain about the gentrification of Brixton, in this case it needs to trickle up Stockwell Road and give this place a once over. Whoever runs it now does not deserve it.
I can’t believe people are sticking up for this guy – who told the woman to ‘suck his dick’! The internet is ridiculous. Get some class people.
@buffy the writer of the original article is not white….i would not want to assume her class.
@Steve Smith, not sure how you can say its not a threat of sexual violence???? As you said people have the right to decline a request but can you be really serious that this was polite request in this situation, of course not!! In this context it wasnt an offer that the writer would want to take up and they would know that, so it was a threat. therefore a threat of sexual violence as the comment is of a sexual nature……….not sure why you want to defend this?? or how you cant see that logic??
the reason this stuff needs to be highlighted is people like you and Almia think its acceptable behaviour.
HILARIOUS!!!
middle class white people need to stop reading the frikkin Guardian get down off their PC high horses and grow a sense of humour in some organic compost JEEZ is there any LESS racist pub in Brixton..??
I posture that she is TOO SCARED to go to The Queen’s Head as it actually IS proportionally representational of the surrounding area and accurately reflects its culture accurately.
The owner’s refusal to conform to politically correct leftie sensationalist keyboard warrior journalism only serves to highlight her hypocrisy and strengthen my resolve to enjoy the warm, genuine party atmosphere in the pub.
I think the opening line from the original article sums up the writer’s agenda: “Let’s be honest, I’ve never been a fan of The Queen’s Head pub, Brixton…..”
I’ve been to the Queen’s on a couple of their reggae nights and it’s the most mixed pub I’ve ever been in around Brixton. Some of the people may act like dicks there (HELLO IT’S A PUB!) but this piece of ‘news’ looks to be more about a sloppy, sensationalist journalist trying to make a name for herself than dealing with actual facts.
Did she even check to see who wrote the offensive comment? And ‘sexual violence’? Come on. That’s just silly.
Has she spoken to anyone who was at the night? Was anyone there white or black actually offended? If not what’s it got to do with her?
I always love when people tell me it’s a ‘free country’ we live in. LOL
Better PR company required I think.
While not wishing to appear to defend the actions of anyone associated with the pub’s facebook account, or in the photos:
There was no threat of sexual violence:
At worst it was an instruction meant as a put down from someone who knew they had either lost the moral high ground, or had too low an IQ to defend their point, at best it was a request.
I thought a woman has the right to decline?
Decline. Politely or impolitely. Or just tell them to forcibly eject themselves from your presence.
As for the costumes, it looks to me as if the guy in the KKK outfit is black – and the white guy in blackface is with him as part of the act… Role reversal perhaps in some kind of “aren’t we clever?” way, while it being not that clever.
ignorant, poor taste, stupid? Yes all of those things and more.
Now, how does this affect my day?
It doesn’t.
How should it affect yours? It shouldn’t.
So why does it affect hers so profoundly?
This article is basically about a woman got offended by photos of a party she did not appear to be at, after the fact, started a public conversation about it on the pubs page, and the low IQ moron who ran the page decided to chime in.
Everyone, take your business elsewhere – or – less alarmist, carry on as usual.
“As for the costumes, it looks to me as if the guy in the KKK outfit is black – and the white guy in blackface is with him as part of the act…” Role reversal perhaps in some kind of “aren’t we clever?” way, while it being not that clever.”
Role reversal in the sense that during the day, black face is white and a member of the KKK?
Either way, I think a more accurate description of what they went as is a pair of tw@ts in costume.
That’s the landlord of the pub btw who is blacked up, what a bell.
I’m not racist at all.
I agree with post at the top it’s in line with Halloween. I think people take offence to easily these days.
Freedom of speech and movement!
They are not hurting no one although they could have used a more appropriate language with the correspondence.
Whilst I certainly don’t agree with the costumes, the whole of Halloween is controversial imagery. If you trace it back, it stems from Devil worship, so the actual images in question are probably more in line with Halloween than your pumpkin and ghost. This may be down to a more personal level of offence, as a witch will cause just as much offence to someone affected by that.
We either live in a country of freedom, where you can say and express yourself freely, or we don’t. If you don’t like something then stay away from it. Yes they have shamed themselves but that is up to them. Should they really be stopped in a free country?
A – you contradict yourself completely – “we live in a free country where we can express ourselves freely….but if you don’t like something stay away from it” – what, rather than express yourself freely, you mean?
She has every right to not like something, and even go against it but why attempt to close something down because you don’t like their opinion? The 2 men who are being criticised are being told they are ‘not allowed’ to do what they like. That is the clear difference here.
It’s a childish way of dealing with an adult problem. The first thing a child would think to do is snatch and take away something from someone they don’t like. Clear case in point is this. An adult reaction is to realise the foolishness of somebody’s actions and stay well clear, rather than hang on to it and stay as involved as you can.
Freedom of speech is ruining freedom of speech.
Shortly after the owners of the Queen’s Head took over the pub I was having a chat with the barmaid and the owner came over, very drunk and several times made very offensive comments about what he thought I’d like to do the barmaid. A drunk arse in a pub is one thing, but a drunk offensive boss in your workplace is another, I felt very sorry for the barmaid.
It was my local, I’ve not been in since so I don’t know if it’s changed but this doesn’t surprise me.
He drinks and becomes a bit of a queen sometimes… but I’ve had good times in his company, without being biased (been told off by him and annoyed by his actions myself, more, in fact).
Running a pub like this is hard. Not during the day, not when it’s easy, but when it’s busy and you’re up until the early hours cleaning up and such.
They do enough right at this pub that it should be left alone. Maybe someone’s looking to take over the place and prodded someone else into digging up dirt?