A Vietnam War-themed bar in Melbourne, Australia, is being criticized for capitalizing on a war that killed millions.
The Rickshaw Bar, located in Melbourne’s Richmond neighborhood, is being criticized for its insensitive decor, including old military aircraft materials, brand identification tags, fiery menu items and bullets in beer glasses. The interior of the bar also features an orange motif, which critics say is inspired by Agent Orange, a chemical weapon used in war.
A bar in Australia’s Richmond neighborhood is under attack for trying to cash in on a theme inspired by the Vietnam War. (iStock)
The bar, in an Instagram post now deleted, said it intended to “do something a little more radical” with the war-themed decor. However, the media and social media users were quick to call the establishment insensitive.
“Imagine a war in which more than a million people died, and then imagine deciding to create an aesthetic out of it, to sell cocktails filled with bullet cartridges, with the theme of Agent Orange,” wrote the Asian-Australian media website Liminal magazine on Twitter.
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“In a year when anti-Asian racism grew dramatically, this bar was opened * in Richmond *, a suburb with a strong Vietnamese population, including people who would have * literally fled this war *,” said the outlet added. “This is horrible.”
A spokesman for the Australian Veterans Affairs Department also commented on the bar’s news to TimeOut Melbourne, saying the group “encourages individuals or organizations to solemnly acknowledge our involvement in wars, conflicts and peacekeeping operations. , respectful and dignified. “
The Rickshaw Bar later apologized and removed ads from its social media site after the reaction.
“We removed our content and apologized to anyone who was offended or considered the content inappropriate,” wrote the bar on Instagram. “We reviewed our tone and are working hard to fix it. Sorry for any problems caused – that was never our intention.”
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More than 58,000 American soldiers lost their lives during the Vietnam War, and between 2.1 and 3.8 million Vietnamese soldiers and civilians were killed. Traces of the orange agent that still contaminates the soil in parts of Vietnam also continue to pose persistent medical problems for the country’s population.