Yesterday was the 12th anniversary of 9/11. And one bar in Shenzhen, China apparently decided to throw a party — complete with unsettling cosplay. Hey, the bar said it was a fun party!
As pointed out by The Nanfang Insider, the event featured men in military- and Middle Eastern-style garb, brandishing weapons and shooting “Americans.”
According to the bar’s social networking account, this was a “Counter-Strike” party. Kotaku reached out to the Angel Baby Bar for clarification.
The bar’s management told Kotaku that the date was picked because “it would draw attention attention to [the party].”
“We picked Counter-Strike as a theme for this party,” a manager surnamed Wang told Kotaku, “because 9-11 had to deal with soldiers, conflict, and terrorists.”
“It seemed like the right theme for this party,” Ms. Wang added. “It was fun.”
The event poster appears to read Counter-Strike in Chinese (反恐精英). The poster clearly reads “9.11 Wednesday” in Chinese. And as Kotaku reader Leiber notes, the poster doesn’t even feature art from Counter-Strike. Instead, it features art from Battlefield Bad Company 2: Vietnam.
There are also S.W.A.T. team cosplayers (in Counter-Strike S.W.A.T. is an in-game faction), and troops with armbands that seem to read, “Beer Inspector.”
When asked whether or not she felt the party’s theme was insensitive or if she had heard any complaints, Ms. Wang told Kotaku that she didn’t get any negative feedback, adding that it was an enjoyable party.
This isn’t the first military style game-infused event at this Shenzhen club. Last month, there was a Call of Duty-themed party, complete with folks dressing up in camo. The timing for that was ok, I guess. This? Not so much.
SHENZHEN BAR THROWS 9/11 PARTY [The Nanfang Insider]
AngelBabyBar [Official Site]
Eric Jou contributed to this report.
To contact the author of this post, write to bashcraftATkotaku.com or find him on Twitter @Brian_Ashcraft.
Kotaku East is your slice of Asian internet culture, bringing you the latest talking points from Japan, Korea, China and beyond. Tune in every morning from 4am to 8am.
Comments
8 responses to “A Counter-Strike Party On 9/11? It’s Actually Worse Than It Sounds”
Those guys cosplaying the terrorists had my laughing my butt off.
Not sure why.
Why are people in Arabic garb automatically called terrorists? Oh the media? Ok…
well you see… This is a counter strike party. They dressed as the terrorists.
I don’t recall the terrorists in CS wearing those garbs, or having long beards either. Facemasks and headbands ring a bell, though.
This is unsurprising. All sorts of crazy stuff goes on in China. That’s why it’s so charmingly perplexing. I’m sure there was no ill will behind the idea.
I heard the best joke last night that fits this article perfectly… if you are easily offended by inappropriate humour I suggest you don’t look.
Whats the difference between 9/11 and a cow? People stop milking the cow after 12 yearsStill too soon?
Oh no ! Young people acting irresponsibly ! The horror..
Seriously, it’s been 12 years – it’s time to let go and move the fuck on.