Confessions of the Most Racist Man in San Angelo

OPINION — Social media is screaming that I'm a racist. Strangers have confronted me, threatening physical fights. All of this is unjustified, stemming from my decision to fire two employees at the Arc Light Bar and Grill, a restaurant and bar I co-founded inside the Clarion Hotel at 441 Rio Concho Dr. in San Angelo.

My attorney advised there's little I can do legally, as I'd likely be considered a public figure in Texas. "It's her First Amendment right to call you a racist," she said. Her recommendation: "Just ride it out."

I disagreed. A man's reputation is his most valuable asset, and being labeled a racist carries severe business and personal repercussions—especially for a white male. I work in journalism and once ran for political office. It's in the public and political realm that I'll defend myself, legal advice be damned.

The social media attacks began after a tough decision last Friday: I fired the head bartender and a second bartender. The core issue was insubordination, culminating in a dispute over the music allowed on the jukebox. Ultimately, I believed continuing on that path would erode my authority to make key decisions about operations and profitability.

The two fired employees were Hispanic women, and they quickly took to social media, claiming I dismissed them due to their ethnicity. This is a lie—they know it. If racism were the motive, why did I replace the head bartender with another Hispanic woman? They also accused me of planning to fire everyone until my staff was all white. That's blatantly false and absurd; any small business owner in San Angelo knows our city's demographics make it impossible to exclude based on race or culture while hiring the best talent.

The bar business in San Angelo is brutal—you need toughness to survive. Many fail due to cash theft; as a former mayor once said, bad employees can "steal you blind." Yet, I see opportunity. The Arc Light is a vertical integration for my main business, San Angelo LIVE! Instead of promoting others' venues and risking late payments or cancellations, this lets me build a complementary operation while leveraging my news platform's success.

My second goal: Establish a foothold in the Texas music scene. Live music requires controlling the bar revenue—beer taps fund the shows. My vision is a thriving venue anchoring the local scene and launching "Texas Country LIVE!," applying the strategies that made San Angelo LIVE! outperform all local radio, TV, and newspapers combined, to the internationally acclaimed Texas Music scene.

A side note: When the late John Basquez and I founded San Angelo LIVE!, we debated starting with local news or Texas music. John pushed for local news and designed our iconic logo, winning the argument. He passed in 2020, and I miss his expertise daily.

Pursuing the music venue was challenging, but promising. Summer crowds grew steadily; in mid-July, we sold out with over 400 patrons for a flood relief concert, raising $188,000 for the San Angelo Area Foundation. A competitor, Blaine's owner, confronted me aggressively—nearly coming to blows until my wife intervened. As a former combat pilot, I know: When you're over the target, you draw fire. We were gaining ground. My sound guy, Brian Thomas, and I watched attendance climb weekend by weekend.

Then, crowds vanished. Why?

We audited the bar and pinpointed one issue: The jukebox music—loud hip-hop and rap—was attracting a crowd misaligned with our goals. Gross sales rose, but profits fell. We believed this music repelled demographics who'd support live music. The head bartender insisted there was no market for our vision and pushed for explicit, "ratchet" tracks to boost revenue.

But our spot is inside a family-friendly hotel; kids are welcome until 9 p.m. I refused to expose families to songs glorifying explicit sex or drugs. Nor did I want a business reliant on gang elements. I couldn't convince the head bartender to help eliminate these issues.

A week ago Friday, we hosted two nationally known musicians for an acoustic song swap. Expecting modest turnout due to high school football, we got zero attendees. Our live music efforts had stalled.

Thursday, I accessed the jukebox backend and clicked a single button to "Turn Off Explicit Music," eliminating most of the head bartender's playlist. Hours later, she stormed into my office at San Angelo LIVE!, screaming, "You racist! You took away all the music that brown people want to hear!" She wouldn't listen. My San Angelo LIVE! staff was stunned, questioning my control. It was humiliating.

That night, the second bartender went live on Facebook from my bar, claiming she couldn't play "Mexican music." It damaged my reputation and business—and it was a lie.

Over weeks, many of my 20 employees privately voiced safety concerns due to the crowd drawn by unfiltered music. Gang members I'd asked to ban showed up Thursday. I was losing grip.

Friday, I fired the two. They retaliated online, smearing me.

I once asked the late, great Blaine Martin of Blaine's Pub why his interior lights stayed bright. In his gravelly voice: "I want the ladies to feel safe." I agree—everyone must feel secure. The Arc Light is for all, but with standards.

Post-smear, Friday night's gross sales matched the prior week's, but patrons dropped 20%—with per-ticket sales nearly doubling. A new crowd flipped the vibe 180 degrees. Startup singer/songwriter Reagan Helms drew a growing acoustic crowd from a dozen to 40-50. Live music revived!

I dream of San Angelo's premier live music venue for emerging artists. I won't be derailed by false racism claims from disgruntled ex-employees. As former head of the Chamber's Destination Marketing Organization, I helped earn the City of San Angelo's "Music Friendly City" designation from the governor—one of Texas's first. We need more live acts; too many bars have shifted to explicit tracks and DJs.

This is my one shot—I won't yield to slurs. The Arc Light welcomes all, but behave! To support me and my staff in bringing top Texas music here, stop by. Meet the "most racist man in San Angelo" per social media—but enjoy sports, live music, great food and a delightful atmosphere.

To those calling me racist: Go to hell. I'm promoting Texas music!

We have open mic night every Wednesday. Any local musician of any genre is welcome to come perform. In addition, all of our live music shows announced so far are on Stubwire. You can buy a ticket or reserve a table online. Here's the calendar through the end of the year and a little beyond: