Streetlight Manifesto Fans Fight To Get DC Venue Changed

streetlight manifesto

Last night a group of punk kids from the DC area began petitioning for Streetlight Manifesto to drop the venue they booked in Northern Virginia (which for those who don’t know is basically a suburb of DC) known as Empire. For those who remember, a few weeks back The Wonder Years spoke out against Empire’s staff for their usage of homophobic slurs. In light of that incident (and others), fans are now asking Streetlight move their final area performance so that fans can attend the show without supporting an establishment that does not believe in equality.

To be more specific, the requests from concerned fans suggests that Streetlight Manifesto move the show over to The Lab, an all ages DIY venue that is around the same capacity and has a sound engineer and board that could handle Streetlight’s huge sound. The Lab is around a five minute drive from Empire and would provide a more accepting atmosphere to every Streetlight Manifesto fan.

The DC punk scene is known for being a progressive community, so it’s really not surprising to hear a resounding backlash that is only growing. With more than 40 likes and 40 comments on a single post about moving the venue, it’s clear a substantial part of the DC community is speaking out. The question is, will Streetlight Manifesto listen?

You can check out the original post on Streetlight Manifesto’s Facebook page right here.

Do you think bands and booking agents should be more conscious about where they are booking bands? Let us know in the comments what you think.

Tyler Osborne
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3 Responses to “Streetlight Manifesto Fans Fight To Get DC Venue Changed”

  1. John Ripley says:

    Honestly I think that I might care. This is what punk rock is all about, im fairly certain

  2. i worked for Empire as a sound guy for half a year. I will never step foot in that Shithole again.

  3. Andrew Fast says:

    I definitely care about the venue, there are certain ones that just aren’t meant for a punk/ska/hardcore/etc show. Maybe they seat more people but there is way less energy at a show when you can’t get out of your seat