Hop Farm Brewing Company cancels Sam Hyde appearance
“We hate everything that Sam Hyde stands for,” Matthew Gouwens told the Chronicle.
Matthew Gouwens is clear: Alt-right comedian Sam Hyde is not welcome at Hop Farm Brewing Company in Lawrenceville. He canceled a scheduled event with the comedian as soon as he learned of the performer’s hateful rhetoric.
The antisemitic, racist, homophobic comedian was scheduled, through promoter Hazy Heckler, to appear at the brewery on April 12. Gouwens and his wife, co-owner Emily Gouwens, were unaware of Hyde’s hate-filled material and comments before an online Chronicle article highlighted his history, which included mocking victims of the Pittsburgh synagogue shooting days after the attack.
“We hate everything that Sam Hyde stands for,” Matthew Gouwens told the Chronicle. “We were unaware of his history and affiliation with bigotry and antisemitism and the blatant actions he has taken to solidify these affiliations. These actions completely go against what we stand for personally, as a company and as a member of the Pittsburgh community.”
Matthew Gouwens said he has a Jewish employee, is friends with members of the LGBTQ+ community and “loves all people,” noting that everyone is welcome at his family-owned business.
And while he accepts ultimate responsibility for the booking, Matthew Gouwens said he was “disappointed and upset” that the promoter did not disclose the nature of Hyde’s act.
The incident, Matthew Gouwens said in an email to the Chronicle following the story’s publication, has shown that he needs to do more vetting of entertainment booked at the brewery.
“I personally am putting new checks in place to make sure any acts or performances are properly researched before booking,” he said.
Emily Gouwens said she regretted not having the information about Hyde before he was booked or learning about his hateful comments before the article was published.
“We would have acted immediately,” she said, “because it’s not OK. We’re a family-owned business who employs people of all backgrounds and works every single day to provide a space where everyone feels welcome.”
The Chronicle attempted to reach the brewery before publishing the original story but was unsuccessful.
The Gouwens said they’re afraid of the impact the booking might have on the business they worked hard to build and hope the community knows they understand the mistakes they made and are working to ensure something like Hyde’s schedule appearance never happens again.
“In today’s environment, where things can spiral so very quickly, we don’t’ want to tarnish relationships we’ve spent a lot of time developing and that we cherish,” Emily Gouwens said.
In a conversation with the Chronicle on April 10, Nicholas Fardo of Hazy Heckler said that Hazy Heckler also has stopped working with Hyde.
Fardo said that he was aware that Hyde was a “raunchy comedian” but had no idea of the hateful content of his material. Fardo said Hazy Heckler has a history of working with LGBTQ+ comedians and, while it supports the First Amendment and freedom of speech, it does not support hate language.
Hazy Heckler’s goal, Fardo said, is for everyone to have a good time and laugh.
Hyde’s Pittsburgh appearance was still listed on Eventbrite on April 11, but was password protected, preventing anyone without a ticket from seeing where the event was being held. It listed West Mifflin as the neighborhood of the event and the VFW Pittsburgh as the venue hosting the event. PJC
An earlier version of this story stated that Hazy Heckler worked out of Lolev Brewery. Both the promoter and venue have said that is incorrect.
David Rullo can be reached at drullo@pittsburghjewishchronicle.org.
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