Anti-Flag have canceled their February show At Altar Bar in Pittsburgh, according to the Pittsburgh City Paper. The reason for the cancellation stems from comments that the bar's promoter Brian Drusky put on his Facebook. The comments were related to Drusky's views on the anti-violence protests resulting from the decisions in the Eric Garner and Michael Brown cases. One post read:
“Man i got pulled over last week and got a ticket because I was speeding. I’m going to go lay down in the middle of giant eagle as a protest! just just just because!†Another made reference to lying down in protest over a botched McDonald’s order, and another to a Steelers loss."
After learning of the posts, Anti-Flag canceled their show and released a statement, which said, in part:
"Based on recent actions, we feel that Brian Drusky, the owner of the company promoting our show in Pittsburgh, is on the wrong side of that conversation. For this reason we do not feel comfortable playing a show he’s promoting. Confronting bigotry and blind allegiance to power with education is something Anti-Flag believe in."
Following Anti-Flags cancellation, Drusky is quoted as saying to the Pittsburgh City Paper, “I was just frustrated…I made a couple of comments…There was a lot of Twitter movement and people talking about it. I was like, ‘Wow, I didn’t realize what I did." Drusky also issued an apology via Facebook which has since been made private or deleted, which read, in part, "remarks were an attempt to be funny. However, they were not funny to a lot of people because I made light of something that I didn’t understand fully."
Drusky also stated that he has plans for a town hall meeting and a benefit event for Leon Ford, an East Liberty man paralyzed after being shot by police during a traffic stop in Highland Park in 2012. You can click read more for Anti-Flag's full statement.
Anti-Flag's statement on show cancellation
"Through the cases of Eric Garner, Michael Brown and all those who have suffered at the hands of racism, police brutality and an unjust legal system, there is a loud and important public discourse. Based on recent actions, we feel that Brian Drusky, the owner of the company promoting our show in Pittsburgh, is on the wrong side of that conversation. For this reason we do not feel comfortable playing a show he’s promoting. Confronting bigotry and blind allegiance to power with education is something Anti-Flag believe in. We hope that Brian Drusky will have that education process happen in his future. While we believe in people’s ability to change and become educated, there must be consequences for the things that he said. As four individuals from Pittsburgh, PA, our power at times can feel limited; this is an instance where we can exercise our power by not working with Brian Drusky. Anti-Flag has always and will always stand with people who are fighting for justice and against those who belittle that fight. We’ll be announcing the new venue for our Feb. 6th Pittsburgh show in the next few days, along with refund information for those of you who have purchased tickets to the canceled Altar Bar show."