Watch the full PSA below, and learn more about the Lesbian Bar Project, including how to donate, here. And that we, too, can protect a safe space.” I remember that Pride began as a riot, that our community is getting stronger and more vocal every day. “I remember when it all suddenly went silent. “I remember the lost spaces,” DeLaria says in the video. The one-minute, 50-second spot highlights popular lesbian bars past and present. Out actress-comedian Lea DeLaria ( Orange Is the New Black) narrated and executive-produced the PSA with The Katz Company. Blush&Blu in Denver, Colorado Cubbyhole and Henrietta Hudson in New York City Herz in Mobile, Alabama Ginger’s in Brooklyn, New York Gossip Grill in San Diego, California Lipstick Lounge in Nashville, Tennessee My Sister’s Room in Atlanta, Georgia Pearl Bar in Houston, Texas Slammers in Columbus, Ohio Toasted Walnut in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania Walker’s Pint in Milwaukee, Wisconsin and Wildrose in Seattle, Washington. As Them reports, those bars are A League of Her Own in Washington, D.C.
Years later, as a proudly out filmmaker, she’s made it her mission to “use the power of filmmaking to illuminate the rich history of these 15 spaces and provide an opportunity for lesbian bars to tell their stories.”Īll proceeds from the fundraiser go directly to participating lesbian bars. Rose recalled how she “immediately felt seen” the first time she walked into Cubbyhole, one of New York City’s most well-known lesbian bars. Losing just one more of these cherished spaces has devastating consequences for queer people in this country.” “That number is staggering and frankly unacceptable. “When the pandemic hit, I learned that there were only 15 lesbian bars left in the country,” Rose said in a statement. The initial launch consists of two parts: a ’90s-style PSA directed by filmmakers Erica Rose ( GIRL TALK, Please) and Elina Street, and a four-week fundraiser on the Lesbian Bar Project’s website. The Lesbian Bar Project, a branded campaign created in partnership with Jägermeister’s #SaveTheNight initiative, launched this Wednesday, October 28. in 2 reviews 2) No fitteds /baseball caps allowed inside. One new fundraising effort could help ensure their survival. HENRIETTA HUDSON - 64 Photos & 197 Reviews - Gay Bars - 438-444 Hudson St, New York, NY - Phone Number - Yelp Henrietta Hudson Write a Review Add Photo Review Highlights I came here to get a few drinks after dinner it was Karaoke night which was amazing. One person going out with the virus who gives it to 10 people, and then those 10 people give it to another 10 people.There are only 15 lesbian bars still standing in the U.S., and many of them are in financial peril due to the COVID-19 pandemic. “One person can destroy all of this again. “Everyone is in the same boat,” she said. She said she was eager to get back on firm financial footing, but also “afraid of what is to come.” She renegotiated the rent for her Manhattan bar down from $19,500 to $12,000, but the monthly bills for the Brooklyn club are usually $40,000. These community spaces may remain imperiled for years, though, because of the continuing threat of the coronavirus.īrenda Breathnach, who owns the Phoenix in the East Village and 3 Dollar Bill in the East Williamsburg section of Brooklyn, said she expected both establishments to open in July. “I think people are sort of yearning for their spaces and their community again.” “People are really excited to go out, even if it’s in a limited capacity or it’s a little more restricted,” he said. The club, whose rent of $9,500 per month has gone unpaid since April, has raised more than $20,000 on GoFundMe.īut a new bar he is opening in Park Slope, Brooklyn - its planned April start date was delayed by the pandemic - will likely open next month because it is a smaller space. “We really want to be safe and that kind of means being one of the last spaces to open,” Mr. The question of when to reopen is a complex one for many gay bars, which often house stages, dance floors and areas where groups - sometimes as large as a wedding reception - can meet.Įric Sosa, the owner of C’mon Everybody, a club in the Bedford-Stuyvesant section of Brooklyn, said his establishment would not reopen for months because dance parties, live music and other types of performance were key to its business model. “Like, I got an email from a stripper who I have never even met: ‘Listen, I am going to do a strip show and donate everything to Henrietta’s.’ It’s incredible.” “It’s different for queer people, because all we have is each other,” Ms.
She said there had been “an outpouring of support.” media organizations and raising money from supporters, including more than $32,000 on GoFundMe. That has included renegotiating the rent, talking about the bar’s challenges to L.G.B.T.Q.
In the meantime, she has been busy working to keep it afloat. But Henrietta Hudson may not reopen until next spring, she said.