Earlier this year I filmed the above video of an unruly patron standing outside Harry Bar in San Francisco and giving one of the bouncers a real hard time. The idea of making the video was not preconceived.
As I wrote in this space at SFgate.com and at Oakland Focus and San Francisco Focus, it was an accidental happening on the 4th of July, where I turned on my Flip Video Camera (Hey, they should sponsor me!) because the guy was being so mean I figured no one would believe me unless they saw it for themselves.
I had no idea he was going to wind up in a chokehold courtesy of the bouncer.
I also had no idea the video would become a hit. A kind of Rorschach test for our culture that's generated over 200,000 views as of this writing.
The reason for its popularity isn't the actions of the bouncer, but how people in the video reacted to both the patron and the bouncer. The 1,335 YouTube-based comments (as of this writing) are particularly fascinating, that is if one gets past the flames and insults of me and of one commenter to the other.
Basically, the majority of people didn't like the young white gentleman who was trying to get the bouncer to stop his chokehold. Many believed he was interfering with the bouncer, who was perceived as just doing his job. The Bouncer was perceived as a hero as shown by this comment:
@Frankie3112Nld
Nothings illegal in a street fight.
If your in the shit it goes like this:
Level 1.) Annoyance/Possible threat
Level 2.) Possible Serious threat
Level 3.) Serious threat
Meaning: You never really know whats going to happen. For all you know the dude could have a knife or a weapon. But the bouncer here clearly demonstrates the best way to effectively neutralize someone without great harm. Bravo.
Everyone, both in the video comments, and on the street, have some opinion about each of the people in the video. But I also find that the views of the video differ with respect to profession or "bent": men in law enforcement or who worked as bouncers all support the Bouncer's actions. But people, mostly women, from other walks of life have varying viewpoints both online and on the street.
A couple I was talking to at Pican in Oakland last night said they too supported the Bouncer, but thought the older African American woman who asked "Are you going to kill him" as he was holding the Patron was totally funny. And someone I overheard talking about my video - but not realizing I was nearby - was describing the kind of chokehold the bouncer was using.
I should explain that I didn't start the conversation with the couple; they recognized me from the video. Because of that, I'm able to get great feedback on it, and my work in general.
But me aside, I'm actually still shocked at the video's popularity. It demonstrates the culural power of vlogging. Showing and telling is always better than just telling. A good vlog can serve as a cultural checkpoint: with it we can determine what we like and don't like about our world and work to change it. No, this video didn't cause any new law that I know of, but it did give many a view of how hard a job working the door of a club really is.
On that note, the video was never intended to be a slap against Harry's Bar. Indeed, I wrote and have said the Bouncer who represents Harry's did the righ think. If anything, the video shows the need for faster-reacting security at the 2010 Fillmore Street Fair so that doesn't happen again. Remember, the Bouncer was holding the Patron while waiting for security and the police; he should not have had to wait at all.
No comments:
Post a Comment