(HUDSON, N.Y.) – According to “Closing time for city bars under scrutiny,” an article in the local paper of record, the Register-Star, Gary Graziano, the police commissioner of Hudson, defended a meeting’s heavy emphasis on the Savoia, a club catering largely to a black clientele, on lower Warren Street, from charges of racism by mentioning he has an African-American cousin who goes there.

The controversy over whether bars in this city need a uniform, 2 a.m. closing time continued at Monday night’s meeting of the Hudson Common Council Police Committee, according to the article.

Much of the discussion focused on the Savoia, a club catering largely to a black clientele, on lower Warren Street, and, according to Police Chief Ed Moore, the source of the majority of police calls in the wee hours.

When a citizen asked if race may be a factor in the discussion’s heavy emphasis on the Savoia, Police Commissioner Gary Graziano said, “It’s certainly not the color,” adding that he has an African-American cousin who frequents the Savoia, according to the article.

Well, there you have it, then.