Before I can even talk about my first encounter with Caribbean life in Atlanta, I have to point out that my friend Nevis---a fellow Afro-Caribbean who moved to Atlanta less than a year before for school---researched and selected all the Caribbean parties and events I would be attending with him and a few of his friends this Carnival weekend. For the most part, I didn’t even know where we were going until Nevis called and told me he was on his way to pick me up (this is very common for him and not my lack of interest in the places I go and the things I do).
This night—my first night in town—he told me that we would be going to a party at a club called 426, which is located on Memorial Drive in Stone Mountain. Besides the fact that I wanted to see what a Caribbean party was like in Atlanta, I was excited about going to a club in Stone Mountain because I had heard from several people, including Nevis, that it was where most (if not all) the Caribbean clubs and restaurants were located. I was also a bit concerned about going to Stone Mountain because I was told by a few people that it was home to Atlanta’s KKK. Leave it to Caribbean folk to stroll right up into KKK central and set up shop. Crazy? Yes. Out of character? No. This disregard for white racism and racial barriers has been well documented in studies of Afro-Caribbeans in the US. Several studies have found that Afro-Caribbeans have been the first black families to move into several all white neighborhoods in New York, especially in Brooklyn (surprise surprise). So it is not a stretch for them to exhibit similar behavior in Atlanta, KKK or not. Ok, back to the story.
There were two main reasons why we were going to 426 that night: 1) it was free before 1am and 2) (the most important reason) it had an all night OPEN BAR!!!. I am not alcoholic, but I do love open bars. I don’t know anyone that doesn’t like a good open bar. As a Bostonian turned New Yorker, I know how drinks can turn a simple not out into an expensive extravaganza. Also, as a grad student, I really can’t afford to burn my rent and food money on overpriced drinks. Thus, the idea of paying nothing for an open bar was very appealing. Unfortunately, we didn’t get there before 1am. Anybody that knows Atlanta knows that it is very spread out and you have to drive everywhere. By the time Nevis picked up me and our other partying partner, Paris—a fellow Afro-Caribbean student in Atlanta—and started driving to the club, it was obvious that we weren’t going to make it there before 1am. But, it really didn’t matter us because an open bar at any (reasonable) price is still worth a trip. A little after 1am, we arrived at the club. As we parked in the parking lot behind the club, Nevis pointed out to me 3 other Caribbean clubs that shared the parking lot with 426. I heard that the Caribbean clubs were in Stone Mountain, but I didn’t think they would be located all in the same spot, sharing the same parking lot. Anyways, as we walked through the parking lot, two men with heavy Caribbean accents handed us flyers for an upcoming Caribbean parties at other clubs. We took the flyers and walked towards a hole in the gate that separated the parking lot and the back of 426. Yes, I said hole. Again, I was not surprised. We walked through the hole and walked to the front of the club, which had a very short line. We found out at the door that the cover was $20. We paid the promoter outside and got yellow bands that read “See UR Pic @ Krushmore.com”. My heart started to beat a little faster as I opened the door and walked into the club. Is there an open bar to camouflage the wackness of the club? What would I find?
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