Is "ladies night" gender discrimination?

[Narz]

http://www.startribune.com/local/96108304.html?elr=KArksUUUycaEacyU

Ladies' night not all right, state says

The mainstay of bar culture is deemed discriminatory by the state's Human Rights Department.

By ABBY SIMONS and MARY LYNN SMITH, Star Tribune staff writers

Last update: June 11, 2010 - 4:41 PM

It's a bastion of bar culture: "Ladies' Night," staged to attract female customers by cutting their drink prices and cover charges.

It's also illegal gender discrimination, according to the Minnesota Department of Human Rights.

The department charged this week that by having ladies' nights, five Twin Cities establishments denied men the right to "full and equal enjoyment" of their businesses.

"Gender-based pricing violates the [state] Human Rights Act," Commissioner James Kirkpatrick said in a statement. But even though this marks at least the second time in 16 years that the department has cracked down on the practice, it apparently has continued because bar owners aren't sure it's illegal, and enforcement clearly has been spotty.

The establishments charged won't be named until the cases are resolved, the department said.

In 1994, Gators, a now-defunct Mall of America club, resolved a human rights case by paying less than $500 to Steve Horner of Apple Valley. He had complained of having to pay a cover charge on ladies' night, and the department said the club discriminated against him.

At the time, the department's deputy commissioner, Dolores Fridge, said, "We will pursue any and all individual complaints of gender discrimination concerning ladies' nights."

The Minnesota Licensed Beverage Association notified its membership, and the association's then-director predicted that half of them would stop having ladies' nights and the rest would continue until a complaint was filed against them.

Since then, many bar owners apparently have forgotten about the dust-up, don't know the law or have decided the popular events are worth the relatively small risk.

"I didn't know there was an official judicial decision," said Kenn Rockler, executive director of the Tavern League of Minnesota. "I guess if it came to it, the first thing I would do is have somebody look at it to see if it was constitutional."

I never really thought about it & don't care much about it (since I almost never drink & if I do it's never at bars). But I do think "ladies night" is kind of archaic.

 

[Lillefix]

Of course it is. Same thing with hairdresers too really, but I suppose they are a bit flexible if a woman with very short hair shows up and wants it slightly trimmed.

 

[Cutlass]

It's made to get women drunker so that men have a better chance to score. So it's hardly discrimination in favor of women.

 

[Fifty]

Its discrimination by definition, but its not BAD discrimination... unless you love going to a bar and having a 6:1 guy to girl ratio.

 

[Ekolite]

So long as they have a boys night at some other time there's nothing wrong with it.

 

[amadeus]

But I do think "ladies night" is kind of archaic.

Ladies nights at many bars are to get women to come in and to attract the men that inevitably follow. If the practice is archaic, then so must be the legions of men that go to bars on these nights knowing full well it's going to be packed with women there to enjoy the free entry or complimentary drink (or whatever.)

I can't help but think we are really on a slippery slope to tyranny under the guise of "protecting" people from themselves. How long will it be before we have a case like this? Will the government be regulating private birthday parties to ensure there is no "discrimination" there too? I can't wait to see how screwed up our children will be because the PC police have shielded them from reality.

 

[Zelig]

Its discrimination by definition, but its not BAD discrimination... unless you love going to a bar and having a 6:1 guy to girl ratio.

I prefer this, we must stop the inferior males from breeding by any means necessary.

 

[Abaddon]

So long as they have a boys night at some other time there's nothing wrong with it.

Does not exist.

"Girls Night" is merely to get more girls to go to a particular club. No club ever has a shortage of men.


Fill your club with women, and the men follow.
Fill your club with men.. and its a fight.

 

[JerichoHill]

More women = more men buying drinks = more money for the club.

Of course, Abaddon changed her profile picture just to get more guys here to comment on it.

SS DD

 

[Abaddon]

*his.

An exactly.

(Also a mockery of predators who hang on chatrooms claiming to be 16/f/cali)

 

[EnglishEdward]

Perhaps they should change their free entrance or complimentary drinks to:

customers wearing a skirt, stockings and high heels.

I wonder how many of these litigious mem would dress accordingly to benefit.

 

[Abaddon]

Perhaps they should change their free entrance or complimentary drinks to:

customers wearing a skirt, stockings and high heels.

I wonder how many of these litigious mem would dress accordingly to benefit.

I've known many places that do just that, you get the odd group of guys dressed up.

I think they then get away with it as a "fancy dress" promotion, rather than "sexist promotion"

Shame the drinks offers are usually on Woo-woo's or "Sex on the Beach"

 

[Junzi Nicuzn]

I always thought of it as a service the bar provides for men. They provide an abundance of alcohol, and on Ladies Night, an abundance of drunk women. Any guy complaining about fairness is a tool. Despite the misleading nomenclature, Ladies Night is not for the ladies.

 

[Abaddon]

Very, very true.

If too many men realise this however, it will be a lame sausagefest of a night!

 

[amadeus]

I always thought of it as a service the bar provides for men. They provide an abundance of alcohol, and on Ladies Night, an abundance of drunk women. Any guy complaining about fairness is a tool. Despite the misleading nomenclature, Ladies Night is not for the ladies.

Oh-ho! You are missing an angle, I see.

The student paper at my home university had an interesting take on it, at least as far as the justifications go; one such justification was that "ladies nights" provide a service to heterosexual men and therefore discriminate against homosexual men. No matter how contrived and flimsy, the PC police fears not the use of even the most ridiculous weapon.

 

[Junzi Nicuzn]

Oh-ho! You are missing an angle, I see.

The student paper at my home university had an interesting take on it, at least as far as the justifications go; one such justification was that "ladies nights" provide a service to heterosexual men and therefore discriminate against homosexual men. No matter how contrived and flimsy, the PC police fears not the use of even the most ridiculous weapon.

Student Paper is missing an angle. The bars most homosexual men frequent are very unlikely to ever have a ladies night.

 

[Narz]

It's made to get women drunker so that men have a better chance to score. So it's hardly discrimination in favor of women.

Well yeah, obviously it's on behalf of men.

 

[Narz]

If I were a Minnesota bar I'd change my ad to "two free drinks Thursday night to anyone wearing a skirt". This would attract mostly women, maybe a few crossdressers & perhaps would get my bar in the paper. Would probably increase the culture of the bar too as homophobes would stay away.

 

[Terxpahseyton]

I always thought of it as a service the bar provides for men. They provide an abundance of alcohol, and on Ladies Night, an abundance of drunk women. Any guy complaining about fairness is a tool. Despite the misleading nomenclature, Ladies Night is not for the ladies.

It is not like the Ladies wouldn't be happy about it.

On the OP: To wanne ban something like that because of discrimination is worrying.
The initial idea was that the people are protected from the abuse of state power. Now it is more and more about protecting people from other people abusing their power. This is in general not a totally bad idea. Worker's or costumer's rights was actually an excellent idea.
But it is also an idea which can go too far quit quickly as this example perfectly shows.

 

[Bill3000]

Now it is more and more about protecting people from other people abusing their power. This is in general not a totally bad idea. For instance with regards to worker's or costumer's rights it was actually an excellent idea in principal.

No it's not and get your crappy country to allow me to buy groceries and other goodies after 8 PM.