The slap heard ‘round the world

Pitt State student knocked out; video viewed over 23 million times 

Joshua Smith – editor in chief 

On the evening of Saturday Sept. 7, a Pitt State freshman was filmed at 505, a Pittsburg bar, receiving a “hurricane shot” involving a slap to the face that rendered her unconscious. The video posted on Sept. 9 to X (formerly Twitter) was viewed over 23 million times before it was eventually taken down roughly nine days later and currently sits at over 14 million views on the TikTok page of Barstool Sports.  

A hurricane shot typically involves taking a shot of liquor that is promptly followed by a cup of water being thrown in the recipient’s face and then a slap, also to the face. In the time since the video has made its way around the world and back to Pittsburg, there has been a crackdown on fake IDs which has caused the subject of the video to face backlash on localized social media from underage students who are now unable to get into bars. 

Gracie Chandler, a freshman studying wildlife biology, confirmed she is the girl that was knocked out in the video, during an unrelated previous interview at the Pitt State College Republicans presidential debate watch party. Chandler said she requested the slap and the intensity of it. 

“I was with my friend (Maisson Bateman), we walked to 505, and there I met all his friends,” Chandler said. “So, I’m there talking with all these dudes and then I see a couple of guys get hurricane shots and I was drunk enough that I’m like, ‘I want to do that, that looks fun.’ I asked the bartender (Raven Bright), ‘can I get a hurricane shot?’ She explains to me that I’m going to take the shot; she’s going to throw water on my face, and then slap me. She’s like, ‘oh, do you want me to slap you as hard as I slap the guys?’ And I’m like, ‘yeah.’ I take the shot, she throws the water on me, and I just remember feeling the cold water on my face and then being unconscious.” 

“I just remember feeling the cold water on my face and then being unconscious.” 

After regaining consciousness, Chandler said she was taken care of by Bright, and they both felt bad for each other. 

“I regained consciousness, and I looked at Raven; she looked horrified,” Chandler said. “I busted my lip; it was pretty bruised and bleeding. She took me to the bathroom and helped me rinse my mouth. She was like, ‘can I get you anything on me? I feel so bad.’ And I was like, ‘I feel bad for you knocking me out.’ I felt completely safe the entire time.” 

On the way into 505, Chandler saw that there were some risks to her behavior. Chandler said, “I was walking into the bar as they (two girls) were standing outside getting MIPs (minor in possession citations). I was with a guy that looked like he was 23, so, whatever.”  

When asked if she was stopped for identification on the way in, Chandler said, “Yeah, it’s a 21 plus bar. I go there pretty often, probably twice a week.” After confirming that she has a fake ID, Chandler said, “I was friends with this one girl in high school; she was a dealer of all kinds of stuff, and she was doing fakes. (The friend) said, ‘there’s some company far away that actually does them professionally.’ But it works, I’m 18 right now and I haven’t been denied.” 

Chandler said that she has not paid for any drinks in her visits to bars because someone else always pays. Chandler also said that a bartender gave her and a friend free cocktails, which if true, in addition to the issue of the drinking age, is prohibited by state law.  

K.S.A. 41-2640, No club, drinking establishment, caterer or holder of a temporary permit, nor any person acting as an employee or agent thereof, shall: Offer or serve any free cereal malt beverage or alcoholic liquor in any form to any person. 

 “They don’t charge me for anything,” Chandler said. “I went in, and me and my friend bought two double shot ‘Dirty Shirley’s’ and the bartender’s like, ‘no, don’t worry about it, it’s on me.’ So, I have yet to pay for a drink from a bar because there’s always somebody that pays for it for me.” 

Due to continued pain, bleeding, and concerns about concussion, Chandler got checked out by a doctor the next day and claimed she was told she was fine.  

“I was like, ‘I think I want to go home now,’ so, Maisson walked me home,” Chandler said. “The next day I went to the Health Center because my lip was hurting so bad. I wanted to make sure I didn’t need stitches or anything, because it had not stopped bleeding, and get checked out because I’ve gotten knocked out and I’ve had three concussions before. I overheard the nurses explaining to the doctor what a hurricane shot was through the door, and she’s like, ‘okay, so maybe just don’t do any more of those and you’re fine.’ I had no symptoms of anything. I felt fine, not even hung over.” 

According to Chandler, she has a condition that may have contributed to the loss of consciousness.  

“Maisson and Raven were holding me up while I was unconscious for about 60 seconds, and he’s like, ‘it’s fine, she does this sometimes.’ I have a condition called POTS, Postural Orthostatic Tachycardia Syndrome, it makes me pass out (regularly). A lot of times if I stand up, I’ll pass out, so, I’m totally used to losing consciousness. Some people are saying there’s a nerve in your jaw that if hit right, it’ll immediately knock you out. So, it’s either that, or my POTS, or me being drunk, or just a combination of everything,” Chandler said. 

Wellness and Student Advocacy Services Coordinator for the Bryant Student Health Center, Taylor Panczer said the condition combined with alcohol could have made Chandler easier to knock out. 

“It could be possible,” Panczer said. “From what I know about POTS and what we know with most diseases, alcohol only makes your symptoms worse; they probably would be more prone to being knocked out because of the POTS mixed with the alcohol.” 

Chandler said she is enjoying the attention but would have liked to have been famous for something else. 

“It’s fun because I love attention,” Chandler said. “Like I call myself an attention whore all the time and I’m not kidding. I like it when people come up to me, talk to me, and recognize me. But then, it’s also like, okay, well now I’m just going to be known as the girl that got slapped in the bar. I wish I got famous for something else; you know? At least I don’t look bad in it. It’s just weird checking my phone and seeing all these random strangers talking about me and Raven and then like, I’ll go to class and walk by someone and they’re like, ‘Oh, you’re that one girl that got smacked in the face.’”  

Chandler said her mom called her after being forwarded the video from her youth pastor. 

“My mom did call me a couple of days later. My youth pastor from high school found (the video) and sent it to her. She was like, ‘Gracie, you can’t have this kind of stuff on the internet, digital footprint babe.’ And I’m like, ‘Okay, okay, I’ll take it down.’ And then I just blocked her. Sorry mom,” Chandler said. 

While unable to comment directly on details of this incident, Associate Vice President for Student Affairs and Dean of Students, Dr. Jon Bartlow, was able to speak in general terms about underage drinking, mental health, and the University’s policies. Bartlow explained that the University uses alcohol education to help students make better informed decisions.  

“When students are identified as having an ‘MIP,’ a minor in possession or a minor in consumption, those individuals are assigned an alcohol education class,” Bartlow said. “It’s an online class that we offer once a month. That’s if you’re cited for having that on campus; if a student is arrested by a Pittsburg community police officer, sometimes the courts require them to do an alcohol education class like this as well.”  

Bartlow said that underage drinking is not condoned but is a known reality of college that is addressed as best as possible.  

“We know underage drinking goes on and we know that we can’t address all of it,” Bartlow said. “It’s concerning, but at the same time it’s one of those realities of any college town. I think we try our best to find that happy medium between, ‘we want to educate you to the fact that you’re not making the best choices,’ but at the same time we understand that people, young people especially, make mistakes. While it’s not something we condone, we also know it’s not the end of the world.” 

“We know underage drinking goes on and we know that we can’t address all of it. It’s concerning, but at the same time it’s one of those realities of any college town.” 

Bartlow said the student code of rights and responsibilities guides his process for handling off-campus infractions. 

“We have a student code of conduct in the student code of rights and responsibilities,” Bartlow said. “‘Students… will be held accountable to this code for their off-campus activities when it can be ascertained the off-campus act has a direct detrimental impact on the university’s educational function.’ So that’s kind of gray, but if I become aware of something, and I think it would be beneficial for this student to come in and have a conversation with me, I’ll do it. I’m here to make sure you know the resources we have available in case you’re having any problems or issues. Now, of course, if someone did something that was really bad, which unfortunately occasionally happens, well then there are chances that someone could be expelled from the university.” 

Five days after the initial incident, the evening of Sept. 12 and morning of Sept. 13 saw several users on the Pitt State Yik Yak, a localized social media app for mostly anonymous posting, venting their frustrations about being turned away by 505 and having their fake ID’s taken away. One user posted, “F- the girl that got slapped, now I can’t get into 505 and I’m down a fake.”  

While others posted personal attacks aimed at Chandler or theories on how to get around the ID scanner, one assumedly underage student took to poetry:  

“In neon light, I made my plea, but the bouncer saw right through me. ‘Your fake ID won’t let you in,’ he shook his head, my hopes grew thin. Under stars, I turned away, a dream dissolved, a price to pay.” 

After riding the wave of popularity, Chandler is now dealing with the lows from being criticized by fellow students. In a text message Chandler said, “People are being so mean to me on Yik Yak, I feel so bad.” Chandler responded online to one of the more vicious posts with, “So basically I think I have to kms (kill myself) at this point.” Chandler was reached out to by the Collegio about that comment with recommendations for health resources to which she responded, “Haha yes I’m ok, that was ironic. I have struggled with that in the past, but I’m good now.” 

Chandler gave an update on the unintended aftereffects of that night at 505.  

“I talked to Raven, and she told me that the bar told all the bartenders not to serve me because they know I’m underage. The city is getting involved with 505, and Raven isn’t allowed to give out hurricane shots or she’s fired,” Chandler said. 

Bartlow said the university has multiple resources for students who are struggling with addiction or using alcohol to self-medicate their mental health concerns. 

“This all, (addiction and underage drinking) relates back to mental health,” Bartlow said. “As far as resources go, there are counseling services that are offered through the Bryant Student Health Center on campus. Typically, if a student comes and they need to talk to somebody about anxiety, depression, relationship troubles, or anything, that is where they can go. If someone had a dire need, we do have same-day appointments available.”  

Bartlow also suggested the new TELUS Health app which students can use anytime.  

“We also have TELUS Health, an online mental health resource for our students to be used in addition to or in conjunction with what we already have on campus in the Bryant Student Health Center. This is great because it’s 24-7, at their fingertips on a handy app,” Bartlow said. 

In addition to the resources recommended by Bartlow, Panczer brought up peer support and specialized addiction therapy. 

“We have peer support, so folks that are on the road to recovery and have been recovered for several years. And so, they could do that, or they could see one of our therapists for specialized addictions,” Panczer said. 

Chandler said the video went viral quickly after she posted it online, gaining further reach after she was contacted by companies who wanted to use the content.  

“I posted (the video) on my private (Snapchat) story with like 10 of my friends on it, and they’re like, ‘oh my gosh, Gracie, you should post this on Instagram or your TikTok, like this would go viral,’” Chandler said. “So, I posted it on my Instagram and TikTok and then it just immediately blew up. I checked my phone 30 minutes later and it was at like a hundred thousand views. Then this company, Crazy Clips Only, messages me and is like, ‘Hey, we’re going to put your video on our twitter,’ and that one ended up getting 23 million views. Then Barstool Sports messages me like, ‘Hey, we’re going to put it on our TikTok.’” 

Panczer said brain development is the reason that underage drinking is restricted. 

“Just like any other law, (the drinking age) is put in place for safety measures,” Panczer said. “So, like the speed limit, if you go above that, you have higher risk of getting in an accident; it’s reckless driving. So same with drinking. The standard legalized drinking age is 21. If you’re choosing to drink under that age, there are increased risks. Our brains are not fully developed until 25. By 20, it’s pretty much developed, by age 10 it’s pretty much full size. But you still got some things forming in your prefrontal lobe until 25, it affects your memory, processing, cognitive thinking, and all that.” 

According to Panczer, the larger dangers, come from the long-term effects of binge drinking. 

“Underage drinking, while we don’t condone it, while we don’t love it, by the time they’re in college, they’re not seeing any serious long-term effects when drinking casually or socially,” Panczer said. “At 18 to 21, really above the age of 10, it gets less and less. That changes if they’re choosing to binge drink. Binge drinking, on average, is four or more drinks under an hour for women, five for men. So, if they’re choosing to do that even three nights a week, then you’re going to see some long-term issues.” 

Panczer listed some of the questions that medical professionals have in regard to long-term effects when they encounter binge drinking. 

“Is it getting in the way of daily functions?” Panczer said, “That’s how we, on layman’s terms think about addiction. If so, we need to address that. Do we need to start looking at your liver? Are we going to see some fatty liver issues? Is it going to get more down the road to cirrhosis and other serious liver diseases? And with your kidneys? What we also see for long-term alcohol use is an effect on sexual function.” 

Panczer said there may be issues specifically related to the hurricane shot. 

“If you have been drinking and you take a cold shower, your body can go into shock, and by getting slapped in the face, it doesn’t know how to react,” Panczer said. “You’re not going through a medical shock emergency, but it’s kind of going through a factory reset. Our basic instincts are fight, flight, freeze, or fawn, so you have no idea, even if you’re a willing participant and give consent, what your body will do after getting slapped. So, should you be doing a hurricane shot? No, but that’s for multiple reasons. One, why condone violence? Slapping another person, whether you have their consent or not, is a violent act. And then we can talk about intoxication versus incapacitation when it comes to consent.”