GREENFIELD — Last Ditch, the 10 Fiske Ave. lesbian bar and arts venue that opened in April, has announced it will no longer allow law enforcement in the business.
The bar announced the change on Facebook and Instagram Saturday evening with a social media post matched with an illustration of a person throwing what appears to be a Molotov cocktail with the caption “cops are not allowed at Last Ditch.” The post alleges there was a visit from law enforcement in which “nobody was hurt, arrested or ticketed,” though, when reached by phone on Monday, Greenfield Police Chief Todd Dodge said he was unsure what incident the business could be referring to.
“After an unwelcome visit from local law enforcement last week, we need to make it clear that we will never welcome police or any law enforcement into the space. We reserve the right to refuse entry and service to the pigs in all their forms,” Last Ditch’s Facebook post states. “We plan to lock the door when law enforcement attempts to enter moving forward. Thank you to our amazing bartender who did all they could to de-escalate and keep everyone safe. Thank you to the community members who stepped in as well.”
Phone calls to Asa Rosario, one of three co-owners of Last Ditch, were not returned on Monday and a representative responding to direct messages on the Last Ditch Facebook page declined to comment on the record on Monday. However, in response to someone commenting on the Instagram post, the bar responded that “nothing out of the ordinary was happening” and that, to the best of the bartender’s knowledge, “nobody inside the bar had called the police.” Last Ditch commented on its post that it was “unable to share details publicly for safety reasons.”
In further comments on the post, Last Ditch added, “All patrons were told to leave the bar, which they did since the bartender was unable to keep the cops from entering.”
Dodge, in an interview Monday, said that he checked police logs and found “no calls involving [Last Ditch]” so he was not sure what incident the post could be referencing.
Dodge explained that while law enforcement reserves the right to enter an establishment in the event of an emergency or the report of a crime, police will happily comply with the business’ request that law enforcement stay away from the bar.
“People can refuse anybody — it’s a private establishment and that’s their right, but in the event of an emergency, we need access to the premises to ensure safety,” Dodge said. “Otherwise, if you don’t want us there, we won’t go there, it’s that simple.”
He added that since the Greenfield Police Department has never made any derogatory statements about the bar or the bar’s patrons, he does take offense over the use of the term “pigs” to describe police officers.
“I feel their approach was overly aggressive,” Dodge added in a text message. “Molotov cocktails are representative of extreme violence, which we do not and will not condone.”
