NASHVILLE, Tenn. (WTVF) — Many bars across Nashville are taking advantage of the "Safe Bar" Program.
It's an initiative, created by the Sexual Assault Center, to train bartenders how to intervene in situations of sexual harassment or assault.
It's been active since 2018, but a $75,000 Metro Council grant has helped the program expand exponentially in the last year.
In 2023, there were 11 Safe Bars in the state, two on Broadway. Now, there's 78 total, 28 of them Broadway bars.
"It makes me feel much safer, for sure," said one tourist, Anna Nehring.
"The more people trained, the better," added another.
The free program takes just 1.5 hours to complete, teaching bar staff bystander intervention training. It also provides bars with posters to put in bathrooms that let customers know how they can discreetly get help from a bartender.
"I want everyone that comes to this town to have a memory they can take back home," said Nate Faulkner, the general manager at Teddy's Tavern.
Teddy's was one of the first Safe Bars to be certified, and Faulkner says he's excited for the program to keep expanding.
There's no plan to stop the progress anytime soon. Metro Council approvedanother $75,000 to expand the program for 2025.
If you want to learn more, you can visit the Safe Bar App website.
Interested in becoming a Safe Bar? Fill out the training sign up.
Do you have more information about this story? You can email me at nikki.hauser@newschannel5.com.
Fostering Hope provides Christmas for kids in foster care. I'm delighted to see Fostering Hope expand this year to expand their reach to now include kids in Foster care in metro AND foster kids in East TN hard hit by Helene.
-Bree Smith
