Nightclub stampede reopens Chicago's racial wounds

The nightclub stampede that claimed 21 lives in Chicago on Monday caused a war of words yesterday between the city's civic leaders and the African-American community.

Each blamed the other for allowing the club to operate after a court order demanded its closure eight months ago.

The Rev Jesse Jackson, who is based in Chicago, returned to the nightclub yesterday to demand an independent investigation that would look at the city's failings as well as any negligence on the part of the club.

He said the Epitome club – known as E2 – could not have continued to operate illegally, and advertise on the radio and the internet, without official connivance. "So far we've seen them [the city] in lockstep, putting everything on the owners," Mr Jackson said. "They had to have knowledge it was being used ... the unenforced law is a factor here."

The city authorities, meanwhile, planned to file initial charges of criminal contempt against the club's owners and licensees. It has a history of shootings and a reputation among Chicago clubbers for overcrowding and heavy- handed security. It was cited for 11 building code violations last July and ordered to close.

The recriminations are exposing Chicago's racial and political divisions, with all parties willing to blame everyone except themselves.

The fundamental problem is that E2, and the Epitome restaurant with which it shares a building, was one of the few places where African Americans could socialise. It was also one of only a handful of thriving black-owned businesses in an area, the South Loop, that is being taken over by white-owned nightspots.

For all the trouble it has caused – 80 police calls over the past two years, mostly for fights and shootings – it has also been a rallying point for black activists such as Mr Jackson, who is close friends with one of its owners, Dwain Kyles.

Last summer's court order triggered a campaign on behalf of E2. Local activists said yesterday the city might not have dared enforce the closure order for fear of political and social consequences.

Mr Kyles, a lawyer, used to work in the mayor's office. His partner, Calvin Hollins, is a former police officer with the Cook County sheriff's department – connections that might have afforded them some protection. Nevertheless, the warnings signs were all there.

In December, Bringing About Reform, a local campaign group, wrote to the club to complain of overcrowding. "You should certainly be aware that, should an event such as a fire break out in your establishment, the results could be catastrophic," the letter read.

E2 sold itself as an upmarket establishment, attracting major hip-hop stars and other entertainers. But according to survivors of Sunday night's stampede, on most nights it was hot, sweaty, crowded and dangerous. One woman, Carlisa Howard, told the Chicago Tribune that security guards frequently used pepper spray to break up fights – the very thing that led to panic and the rush for one, partly blocked exit.

The club's history includes an incident in 1996 when the boxer Mike Tyson was accused of sexual assault. Last year, a Chicago police officer shot and wounded a man outside the club after he was allegedly seen brandishing a gun.

Last month, the club was sued by two parking valets who said they were beaten and strip-searched by bouncers who believed they had stolen something from a patron's car.

Yesterday Andre Grant, a lawyer for the club, insisted E2 was open legally, although he could produce no paperwork to substantiate his claim that the court order had been circumvented. He also said the only security staff with pepper spray were hired by Envy Entertainment, the promoter for the night, not by the club.

The city said it had been working closely with E2 to address the building code violations, but could not explain how it failed to notice the club operating every weekend from Thursday to Sunday. "We had no idea they were open," a spokeswoman said.