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Controversial Portland band Black Pussy has been forced to remove itself from its own hometown tour kickoff show due to complaints over its name.
The deeply Google-unfriendly stoner rock outfit was scheduled to play Kenton Club tonight, but announced on Facebook that it would have to cancel after the venue was allegedly "bullied" by "a motivated and insecure group."
"We have played the Kenton Club almost exclusively for the past 3+ years, a place we call home and family," the band wrote. "We all spend our extra money there and are friends with almost all of the staff. Recently, they have been bullied, threatened and strong armed into canceling our appearance tonight."
Related: "Black Pussy is Portland's most controversial band."
According to the band, the other acts on tonight's bill—Mothership, Slow Season and Beastmaker—are still scheduled to play. Representatives of Kenton Club did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
This is not the first time Black Pussy has faced opposition over its name, which many contend is sexist and racist. (The band is made up of five white men.) In 2015, an online petition calling for the boycott of any venue that booked them gathered 1,700 signatures. Since then, the band has been forced to cancel shows in North Carolina and Canada following threats of protest.
“When pressed for anything other than subjective opinion, there’s little evidence to be found of our alleged racism or sexism,” the band wrote on Facebook. “The moniker is a low hanging entendre. We just happen to like Black Pussy without guilt or apology.”
Read the band’s full statement below. Surely the call for “non-cunty dialogue” on the issue will help begin the healing: