The owner of a new gay bar in Green Point has denied allegations of racism levelled against his establishment by a professor who was allegedly hit in the face outside the club after his partner was denied entry.
Lance Solms, owner of one of Somerset Road's latest hotspots - Sliver -said that there was a definite "no racist" policy at his club. "This never occurred to me. It's very unbelievable," Solms said.
But clearly Pierre de Vos, a human rights professor at the University of the Western Cape who is sitting in his Bantry Bay home with a bruised mouth, disagrees.
He said that on Saturday evening he and his black gay partner, Marcus Pillay, had just had dinner at a friend's place and planned to go for drinks at Sliver.
At the door the two white doormen had allowed him to pass through with no hassles but denied access to Pillay, an actuary at an insurance company who was casually dressed in designer clothing and formal shoes.
De Vos and Pillay turned back to address the issue with the doormen, who explained that Pillay was not "dressed appropriately".
An altercation followed in which De Vos called one of the doormen "racist" and "stupid".
Tempers flared and the doorman allegedly told him: "You don't call me stupid."
The doorman demanded that De Vos apologise, and when De Vos refused, he allegedly grabbed him and punched him full on his mouth while the other doorman grabbed and hit Pillay.
Solms said he hired the doorman from the security firm Pro-security and that they had the right to deny access.
He said management would look into the case but the bar had a smart dress code, which was "not written in stone".
"It's a gay bar and the guys are trendy and fashionable but the general theme is smart."
Pillay said he had visited the club on opening night three weeks ago. "I wore takkies the last time and came across one of the doormen involved on Saturday evening but he did not seem to have a problem then.
"I don't know what his problem was. My clothing was not torn and I think I was dressed fine," an upset Pillay added.
De Vos laid a charge at a police station but told the Cape Argus last night that he was still considering taking the matter to the Human Rights Commission.
"Both of us are very stunned to think that in this day and age something like this would happen. It was such an obvious 'race issue'," he said.
Solms said it had nothing to do with race but rather that they "did not want scruffy people visiting their venue".
Pro-security could not be reached for comment.