There are many creeps who harass women at bars. Fortunately, in this case, a perceptive bartender came to the rescue. He noticed two women being harassed and passed one of them a note on a small clipboard disguised as a receipt. It asked her to signal to him if she wanted him to intervene, for which she was extremely grateful.
“The Type of Bartender Everyone Needs”
Twitter user Trinity Allie posted about the incident in a now-viral post. The caption read: “This man was harassing me and my friend and the bartender passed this note to me acting like it was my receipt! Legit the type of bartender everyone needs.”
In the attached photo, the bartender, Max Gutierrez, poses in his Hawaiin shirt while passing a clipboard with the following note: “If this guy is bothering you, put your ponytail on your other shoulder, and I will have him removed. He’s giving ME the CREEPS.” In another post, Trinity explains that she asked him to pose for the picture after the perpetrator left.
“He ended up having to literally yell at the guy,” she adds, “he said ‘You need to get tf away from these girls who clearly are not interested,’ and the dude said ‘that was a little aggressive’ and he said ‘well ur aggressively hitting on them and you need to leave.’”
The post now has 221.8K likes and many praising comments. One wrote, “We need more men like him protecting us.” Another adds, “Not all heroes wear capes. Some wear Hawaiian shirts.”
Read More: People Are Applauding How This Bar Dealt With Someone Spiking A Woman’s Drink
On the Other Side of the Bar
On Reddit, Gutierrez responds to some comments who ask him about the situation. The bartender replied, “It’s something you just pick up from mentor bartenders. Eventually, you become pretty good at reading people, body language, etc.
“This guy was giving off very weird vibes for quite a while, kept an eye on him, try to give him a chance, try to let the girls tell him no and leave it at that, but he didn’t take no for an answer and kept pestering them so eventually I kind of yelled at him and made him leave. I honestly don’t like yelling at customers or embarrassing people, but I find it’s one of the best ways to handle creeps. Calling them out in front of people is usually enough to get them to turn tail and walk away.”
On Twitter, the bartender adds that the man returned for a beer four days later and Max refused to serve him, to the approval of the commenters on his post. One person replied that perhaps the person deserved a second chance. Max responded, “I agree. However, when I talked this over with the manager and described the guest in question, he informed me that this is not the first time we’ve had to ask him to leave for his behavior. If he would have apologized, or asked me to apologize to the girls, it would be different.”
How to Stay Safe on First Dates and At Bars
Unfortunately, it’s not uncommon for women to feel unsafe or uncomfortable on first dates. So listeners of Cape Talk sent in their tips for staying safe in these situations.
- Never consume drinks left unattended.
- Tell the location of your date to a friend.
- Ensure your phone is fully charged.
- Ask to be escorted to your car.
- Trust your instinct. If you feel uncomfortable, act on that feeling.
- Choose a date location you are familiar with.
- Don’t let your first date pick you up; instead, meet at the location via your own transportation.
- Tell the name and contact details of your date to a friend beforehand.
- Keep a friend or family member updated about your whereabouts during the date.
- Ask the bartender or waitstaff for help or to call the police if you feel unsafe.
Additionally, the Univerisity Police Crime Prevention Division lists some preventative measures to avoid becoming a victim of rape. This includes going out in groups, meeting strangers in public locations, and refusing to leave your car behind to go to another destination.
Keep in mind that rape may not always include physical violence; for example, some perpetrators use date rape drugs or threaten their victims into submission. Rape is often committed when seduction fails and the rapist continues without consent. Additionally, most victims know their rapists beforehand; they are often not strangers in a dark alley.
However, let’s make something clear. People could take measures to stay safe and still become a victim. The accountability of rape always falls on the rapist and never on the victim. It’s unfair that people, predominantly women live in fear of rape, and it’s up to society as a whole to make college campuses, dating culture, bars, etc., safe for everyone.