Guns N’ Roses poster draws criticism

A poster promoting a series of concerts by Guns N' Roses has both a county commissioner and the spokeswoman for local nonprofit Safe Nest crying foul.

The drawing for "Welcome to Paradise City" at the Hard Rock Hotel depicts a woman looking unconscious or dead on a sidewalk. In one version of the poster, online, the woman's breast is exposed and her underwear is pulled down to her knees.

The woman appears to be a victim of a sexual assault, according to Lisa Lynn Chapman, spokeswoman for Safe Nest, which supports women who are victims of domestic violence.

"It functions as a mechanism to normalize violence against women, and that's not OK," she said.

Chapman added that the image, which is already on the back of taxicabs and in newspapers, could retraumatize a victim of domestic violence, and Safe Nest has therapists ready to help them.

"When we start looking at pictures objectifying women, we say, 'OK, this is Vegas.' This is beyond the pale, even for Vegas," she said. "This is something that shouldn't be celebrated in any community."

The image also drew criticism from Commissioner Mary Beth Scow, who attended a Monday event with the band that briefly renamed Paradise Road "Paradise City Road." She said she didn't see the artwork until Tuesday, when somebody brought it to her attention.

"Anything that shows a woman in that situation, I just feel is very inappropriate," Scow said.

Contact reporter Lawrence Mower at lmower@reviewjournal.com or 702-405-9781.