Politics and Current
A fight broke out in Kansas College Town after a man wrote “Fuck you, bitch” on a receipt instead of leaving a tip.
Racial slurs scrawled on a bill at a Lawrence, Kansas, bar led to a drunken brawl that spilled into the road and ended with several people behind bars, in line with police.
The violent incident occurred Sept. 15 at Leroy’s Tavern on New Hampshire Street, where a customer wrote “F—k You Ni—r” on his receipt and left it with the bartender.
Authorities haven’t yet identified a man who wrote a hateful message after cashing a $39 bar tab and, worse, wrote “0.00” in the tip box.
Police didn’t say what prompted the man to put in writing the “N” word, not once, but twice, on the banknote, whose time stamp showed 12:16 a.m. on September 15.
The card doesn’t indicate what number of drinks the man had.
He was still contained in the venue when the bartender finally noticed the offensive message and immediately called security to ask him to go away.
Instead of staying calm, the man became aggressive.
As he was being led out of the constructing, the attacker turned and punched the goalkeeper who caught him, According to Facebook post posted by Lawrence Kansas Police.
Then several bystanders stepped into motion.
Fists flew in the air before the normally quiet college town that was home to the University of Kansas erupted into a full-blown firestorm. Bars like Leroy’s lined the streets just off campus.
When officers arrived, several men were still involved in the fight they usually handcuffed them, restoring calm.
Three people were taken into custody, but police didn’t reveal the identities of the suspects.
The police didn’t say whether KU students were involved in the incident.
It is unclear whether the man who began the fight was amongst those arrested.
Multiple injuries were noted as evidence, but their extent was not immediately revealed.
The investigation remains to be ongoing, but police haven’t revealed what charges the man may face.
Authorities later released a photo of the receipt, which didn’t contain any offensive language or racial slurs.
Facebook commenters focused heavily on the race aspect of the problem, with many noting that closeted racists feel more empowered in today’s tense and divisive political climate.
“The fact that people are so comfortable being racist again is truly heartbreaking. Where has the shame gone? People are clearly starting to lose all sense of humanity,” one person wrote.
Facebook user Ben Porter reminded others in the thread that “this kind of thing didn’t just end and start again recently like people seem to think here. This kind of thing has always happened to some extent. We’re just looking at the past through rose-tinted glasses and acting like it’s gotten worse.”
Another person criticized Lawrence police for not taking a strong stance on racism in a Facebook post, arguing that a clearer condemnation was needed.
“I’m not sure what the point of showing this ignorance is, especially if you don’t condemn it in a post?” wrote Justin Adams. “As public officials, I think it’s reasonable to say that we will not tolerate hate in any form in our community.”