You’ve probably seen the numbers: Known cases of coronavirus in the United States have surpassed 3,000 as of today, and—due to the rapidly spreading nature of the virus and the lack of available testing—that number is the tip of the iceberg. Germany has closed its borders, and in Italy, the hardest-hit Western country so far, the number of deaths rose by 25 percent in a day.
These are dark times, and the impulse toward companionship, comfort, and alcohol is as human as it gets. Social distancing is not a cutely worded suggestion for the sick, though. It is crisis management: an imperative for the healthy and the sick and the young and old. And everyone in between.
Around the nation, though, bars continue to stay busy as unfazed 20-somethings continue to stave off existential dread with booze. Beginning early on Saturday, Raleigh was swimming with breathy, germy St. Patrick’s Day crawls. By Saturday night, Governor Cooper had banned all gatherings of more than 100 people. It’s a useful measure, but a somewhat arbitrary number: any large social gathering is risky.
Around the Triangle, many bars are now making the decision to close their doors.
Nightlight in Chapel Hill was the first to lead the charge on Friday, posting a message stating that the bar, “in a conscious effort to help maintain public health and safety,” would close and cancel all events effective March 13. The Pinhook in Durham took up the baton on Sunday morning with an announcement that it was also closing.
Since then, Orange County Social Club in Carrboro put out a notice stating that it was closing until further notice, and Parts & Labor—one of the most popular gathering spaces in Durham—announced that it would close Sunday evening at 8:00 p.m. and remain closed until April 1.
We’re living in an unprecedented historical moment where bars and restaurants are having to make difficult ethical calculations. Flipping the closed sign jeopardizes the livelihood of hourly hospitality workers, an already vulnerable population. It’s going to bleed small businesses dry.
But in the interest of public health, closing the door is the right thing to do. Other bars should follow suit.
Now.
Nightlight and The Pinhook—beloved queer community institutions—both have fundraisers for rent and staff costs during their closures.
If you’re going to drink a PBR at home anyway, close your eyes and pretend you’re on a sticky barstool full of dumb ambient basketball chatter and the click of pool balls. (Damn, I’ve put myself in Accordion Club already.) And then shoot over a virtual tip to your favorite closed bar or Venmo payment to your favorite bartender who is without work. They’re taking a fall for all of us.
PS: Don’t be like former Miss Nevada and get into a showdown with former presidential candidate Marianne Williamson about how you’re owning the (libs? germs?) by going to Red Robin.
Contact deputy arts and culture editor Sarah Edwards at [email protected].
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Unless the author of this article is going to pay the rents for the businesses and all of the businesses’ employees, it’s irresponsible for her to tell businesses that they should shut down. How long should these businesses shut down for, exactly, then? At what point are they “allowed” to re-open?
Everybody is going to be exposed to this virus. There’s no reason to make countless people homeless and wreck lives with this sort of insanity. I was just at my local bar tonight, and I’ll go back again tomorrow, and every day until all of this has passed.
This absurdly irresponsible piece has made the decision for us not to advertise in the Indy any more.
Not going to get my medical advice from the Indy. If that is needed the folks in charge of the pandemic response will say so.
If it’s that important, be a responsible biz owner and close the bar.
NE is Nebraska, NV is Nevada. The idiot you reference in your last paragraph is from NEVADA.