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Beauty Bar apologizes for chalkboard joke

Posted at 5:49 AM, Apr 15, 2016
and last updated 2016-04-15 22:05:00-04

A controversial message on a chalkboard outside of a downtown watering hole is causing quite the stir on social media in Las Vegas.

The message on the board read "I like my beer like I like my violence: Domestic."
 

Someone snapped a photograph of the chalkboard outside of the Beauty Bar on Fremont Street and it was soon circulating on Facebook and Twitter.

Dozens of people began posting messages expressing disappointment on the bar's Facebook page.

Domestic violence is not funny. Apologize today and donate to a domestic violence shelter or rape crisis center in Las Vegas. -- Fanny G.

Shame on you Beauty Bar! I agree with other posters you should apologize, like on local news, and donate to DV shelters and rape crisis center. This is a disgusting way to advertise. -- Melody M.

This is really shameful and I hope that no one in your family EVER has to survive Domestic Violence. There is no humor in this and I am very saddened by this sign. -- Carmen K.

Nevada has one of the highest, if not the highest in ranking of domestic violence. I am not all about being PC but this is absolutely despicable. There are SO many great places to enjoy in Las Vegas. Please choose somewhere other than Beauty Bar Las Vegas to spend your money. This is in incredibly poor taste. They do not deserve your hard earned money. Nor do they deserve ANY respect. -- Odessa F.

In addition, more than a 100 negative YELP reviews have already been left for the bar known for live music.

This place is a joke. You don't have to give them your business. If the owner or manager likes to make light of domestic violence, just imagine what life must be like for the people who work here. I doubt they get any respect. Last Vegas is a vast wonderland. I'm sure you can find a better place to consume. -- Mitra W.

Local performer Jesse Pino canceled his performance at the Beauty Bar on Thursday night after hearing about the chalkboard. And, a bartender at a nearby bar named Oddfellows announced his plans to donate his tips from Thursday night to a local shelter for women and children.

However, there are some people who are defending the bar, saying that it is an old joke and people take things way too serious these days. The original joke goes like this: "I like my women like I like my (blank)" and people are expected to fill in the blank with something humorous. It is one that has been in circulation for many years.

This isn't the first time that a bar has gotten into hot water for using the same line. Scruffy Duffies in Plano, Texas, wrote the message on a sign behind their bar in 2014. The incident resulted in the general manager being fired and the bar officially apologizing on Facebook.

A study that was released this week by Everytown for Gun Safety and the Nevada Network Against Domestic Violence says women in Nevada are 65 percent more likely to be fatally shot by an intimate partner than women in other states. Nevada currently ranks 5th in the nation.

13 Action News reached out to the bar and was told that they removed the message after a couple of hours on Thursday.

The Beauty Bar issued the following statement early Friday afternoon:

Beauty Bar would like to issue a formal statement of apology for the actions of one employee who has been suspended pending further investigation. Ownership and management did not approve of the highly inappropriate message she chose to display on the local bars chalkboard sign and removed it once they were made aware a few hours later. Beauty Bar has been a longtime supporter of local and national anti-domestic violence charities and in no way supported this message.

Representatives with Dos Equis even tweeted a message through social media, saying they do not support the message.  

The Beauty Bar is owned by Darin Feinstein and Corey Harrison, who is a member of the family featured in the popular show "Pawn Stars." The bar opened in 2004.