Nobody’s Darling is intentionally not branded as a lesbian bar with the hope of ensuring trans women and queer women on the gender spectrum feel comfortable in the space, Barnes said. Even people who typically date cis women only as a cis woman would call themselves queer, because it’s more inclusive language. “I think (lesbian bars closing) is a sign that less people identify as lesbians. “Having a lesbian bar was, in some ways, really exclusionary to some people,” Weck said.
Liz Weck, director of social services at Howard Brown Health, believes a trans-exclusionary mindset contributed to the downfall of women-only events like the Michigan Womyn’s Music Festival, which was celebrated for being a safe haven for lesbians but took a strong stance against allowing trans women to participate and ultimately ended its decades-long run in 2015.
One-third said they have had negative experiences in stores, restaurants, hotels and theaters - denied equal treatment, verbally harassed or attacked. Nearly half - 46% - of 27,700 respondents were verbally harassed for being transgender within a year before taking the survey, while 1 in 10 were physically attacked because of their gender identity. Trans people in general face discrimination and violence at “alarmingly” high rates, according to the 2015 U.S. In the pursuit of creating safe environments for women, there were bar owners and festival organizers who did not consider trans women part of the community they wanted to serve. Lesbian bars have a complicated history with the queer community, especially for trans women. You could expect any kind of discrimination you might expect elsewhere.” “Sexism is just as bad as in the mainstream community. “The community itself has to be held accountable,” Baim said.
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Yet just as important is the need for those with ownership of these spaces to reflect on how to foster inclusivity - particularly for those who were shut out previously. “Don’t assume you can’t lose your rights.”įriends Michelle Lapacek, left, and Meagan Bura share a hug July 9, 2021, outside Nobody's Darling. “Don’t ever take our rights for granted,” Summit said. The ones that remain are not just important for socializing and having a good time, but are crucial in helping the community mobilize when it’s being attacked. “I could feel the history in those walls, the sadness in experience that gave them this outlet and led to having special places for women to feel safe.”
“There were women going to these bars for decades, and it was an honor to be around multiple generations at the bars,” Baim said. Renowned lesbian bars like Paris Dance and The Closet hosted blood drives and benefits during a time when many “were afraid to go and share glassware and be around people” at the height of the AIDS crisis, Baim said. Gay bars in some of their earliest days were where activists came together to mobilize, from fighting for marriage equality in more recent years to Summit’s “Gay $” project that combated AIDS discrimination by marking paper money to demonstrate the purchasing power of the queer community. “We need these spaces because they’re often the entry point for people first coming out, and a place where travelers can visit and know they’re welcome,” said Tracy Baim, an LGBTQ advocate, publisher of the Chicago Reader and founder of the Windy City Times, the leading Chicago LGBTQ publication for over three decades.