This past August, on August 12th, Fabric Nightclub in the United Kingdom was closed by the Islington Council because of issues regarding two teenage drug-related deaths. If you remember, many people were tweeting out #SaveFabric in encouragement of keeping this nightclub open. The license that was suspension was at the request of the local police.
Just minutes ago, Islington Town Hall reached a decision to permanently close the doors to the iconic nightclub. The hearing lasted seven hours, providing evidence from the Metropolitan Police, Fabric’s management, representatives from the country’s public health department and the local residents who frequent the venue as well as those who experience the community because of the venue.
As well as the hashtags on twitter, expression of support was seen as well from local officials. For example, the mayor of London, Sadiq Khan. Though Khan cannot intervene in the the affairs of public situations like this community meeting that occurred, he released a statement that said: “I am urging [the authorities] to find a common sense solution that ensures the club remains open while protecting the safety of those who want to enjoy London’s clubbing scene.” The club was home to some of the biggest names in the electronic music community, including artists like Ricardo Villalobos, and Carl Craig.
Emily Thornberry, a British Labour Party politician who has been the Member of Parliament for Islington South and Finsbury, released a statement that said that, “whilst the question of safety must remain paramount, I sincerely believe that the closure of Fabric cannot be the answer.”
On today, Tuesday, prior to the hearing there was a Change.org petition that was directed towards Khan calling for fabric to remain open was signed by 150,000 individuals.
Important figures within the UK’s nightlife like Fatboy Slim and Rob da Bank also voiced desires for Fabric to be re-opened.
Unfortunately, the Town Hall made their decision. If you were unaware of the meeting, or live outside of the UK, you can go onto twitter and check out #SaveOutClubs to see what occurred during the meeting earlier today.
Below, you can find the full statement released by Fabric, as well as a twitter link to their statement. Following that were just a few tweets recently posted on witter regarding the decision.
Following the tragic incidents that recently occurred at our venue, we wanted to extend our thoughts and condolences to the family and friends of those concerned. We pride ourselves on running a safe venue, and we feel extremely saddened by the events that have taken place in recent weeks.
The safety of our customers is our number one priority. Since we opened our doors in 1999, we have always worked closely with the police and the licensing authority in adopting the most effective known techniques to reduce harm and prevent drug-related crime on our premises and we continue to look at new ways we can improve our processes. We currently have comprehensive drug reduction policies in place, including a pioneering system with the police to log and handover any drugs we confiscate.
We recognise that illegal drugs are a particular issue in the clubbing sphere which many venues like ours have challenges in addressing. We have zero tolerance to drugs on the premises and, as recently as December last year, we were described by District Judge Allison in a court judgement as a “beacon of best practice” in managing this issue.
We know there are always areas where we can improve, and, following the recent tragic deaths, we are undertaking a thorough review of the lessons we can learn. As part of this we are independently reviewing all of our procedures to ensure that we have the best possible processes in place to keep our customers safe.
As acknowledged by the Mayor of London, clubs are a central part of the night time economy and London’s music and creative industry and they are in real danger of extinction. We hope to work constructively with the police and the London Borough of Islington to ensure that, in providing the safest possible environment for music-lovers, we continue to operate after nearly two decades as a leading part of the London club scene.
We’d also like to say a huge thank you to all of you that have shown your support over the last couple of weeks, it really does mean a lot.
https://twitter.com/fabriclondon/status/769130426074066944
Tears. 250 jobs lost. Shameful decision #FabricReview
— DJ Mag (@DJmag) September 7, 2016
https://twitter.com/chaseandstatus/status/773312761975738369
https://twitter.com/DavideMartine/status/773316987548233728
https://twitter.com/CrissyCriss/status/773313232639553536
Terrible news. End of an era, and a massive loss to UK clubbing culture #FabricReview
— The Warehouse Project (@WHP_Mcr) September 7, 2016
Can't believe we've lost @fabriclondon. Shame on you @IslingtonBC #FabricReview
— UKF (@UKF) September 7, 2016
Respect and love to all the staff at fabric past and present, you created a legend. Thank you
— Totally Enormous Extinct Dinosaurs (@TEEDinosaurs) September 7, 2016
https://twitter.com/chaseandstatus/status/773313124887851008
https://twitter.com/JackalAnon/status/773312662834909184
https://twitter.com/Alexmetric/status/773312493057875968
Live by the sword, Die by the sword #FabricRip 💊☠🗡
— DJ Fresh (@DJFreshUK) September 7, 2016
I can't believe it… @fabriclondon's license has been revoked #SaveFabric
— Dani Deahl (@danideahl) September 7, 2016
That's fucked up
— Foreign Beggars (@ForeignBeggars) September 7, 2016
https://twitter.com/CrissyCriss/status/773311820715192320
Fabric will close. Fabric's license has been revoked. #FabricReview
— By The Wavs (@ByTheWavs) September 7, 2016