Description
A grassroots tour of the nation's lesbian bars that illuminates their past, present, and hopeful future, from the co-creator of the hit podcast Cruising
Lesbian bars are so much more than a place to get a drink. For over a century, they’ve acted as community posts, political organizing grounds, and sanctuaries. Yet whereas in the 1980s there were an estimated 200 lesbian bars across the US, the current count sits at a few dozen.
In The Lesbian Bar Chronicles, author and co-creator of the hit podcast Cruising Rachel Karp embarks across the country with her wife and best friend to chronicle the stories of the remaining US lesbian bars. Recent narratives have claimed lesbian bars are dying, but Karp’s group finds many of the places they visit to be thriving, their communities sustaining themselves over decades of change and challenges.
Weaving together over 100 hours of immersive interviews with bar owners, staff, and regulars, Karp highlights places like
-Chicago spot Nobody’s Darling, where readers meet “the mayor” Shirley J, who in the 1970s was instrumental in the birth of house music
-Frankie’s in Oklahoma City, where readers attend a “family night” to learn how a lesbian bar can birth a chosen family
-Redz, a Chicana lesbian bar in East LA involved in the precedent setting court case that followed years of arrests for patrons wearing men’s clothing
A heartfelt reclamation of queer history and queer lives, Karp’s narrative examines how these beacons for community and inclusion can teach us to live openly, cultivate connection, and continue to take up space.
Table of Contents
Preface
PART ONE: THE NORTHEAST—LESBIAN BARS ARE NEIGHBORHOOD BARS
CHAPTER ONE
Eve’s Hangout—The First Lesbian Bar? (New York, NY)
CHAPTER TWO
Henrietta Hudson—Lesbian Bars Are Evolving (New York, NY)
CHAPTER THREE
Cubbyhole—In Times of Crisis Where Do You Go? (New York, NY)
CHAPTER FOUR
Ginger’s—Where Everybody Knows Ruthie’s Name (Brooklyn, NY)
CHAPTER FIVE
The Bush—A New Dyke Bar in Town (Brooklyn, NY)
CHAPTER SIX
A League of Her Own and As You Are—Survival Ready (Washington, DC)
PART TWO: THE MIDWEST—BE NICE OR LEAVE
CHAPTER SEVEN
Lost & Found and Executive Sweet—A History of Respect and Resistance (Chicago, IL)
CHAPTER EIGHT
Nobody’s Darling—For the Outcasts (Chicago, IL)
CHAPTER NINE
Dorothy—Where Any Friend of Dorothy Is Welcome (Chicago, IL)
CHAPTER TEN
Slammers—A Family Affair (Columbus, OH)
CHAPTER ELEVEN
The Back Door—Consent Is Fucking Mandatory! (Bloomington, IN)
CHAPTER TWELVE
Walker’s Pint—Be Nice or Leave (Milwaukee, WI)
CHAPTER THIRTEEN
Blush & Blu—The Myth of the Last Lesbian Bar (Denver, CO)
PART THREE: THE GREAT QUEER PILGRIMAGE WEST
CHAPTER FOURTEEN
Mona’s—Where Girls Will Be Boys (San Francisco, CA)
CHAPTER FIFTEEN
Maud’s—The Best of Times, the Worst of Times (San Francisco, CA)
CHAPTER SIXTEEN
Wild Side West—When Life Gives You Garbage, Plant a Garden (San Francisco, CA)
CHAPTER SEVENTEEN
Gossip Grill—Welcome Home (San Diego, CA)
CHAPTER EIGHTEEN
Redz—Shit Come, Shit Go, I’m Gonna Be Myself (Los Angeles, CA)
CHAPTER NINETEEN
The Wildrose—The Heart of the Hill (Seattle, WA)
CHAPTER TWENTY
The Sports Bra—Everyone Watches Women’s Sports (Portland, OR)
CHAPTER TWENTY-ONE
Doc Marie’s—We Fight Because We Care (Portland, OR)
PART FOUR: THE SOUTH—WE KEEP US SAFE
CHAPTER TWENTY-TWO
Alice Brady’s and Charlene’s—Lesbian Bars Are Political (New Orleans, LA)
CHAPTER TWENTY-THREE
Les Pierres—The Home They Built (New Orleans, LA)
CHAPTER TWENTY-FOUR
Boycott Bar—Lesbians Against Drunk Driving (Phoenix, AZ)
CHAPTER TWENTY-FIVE
YBR Pub—From Ally-Run to Queer-Run (Tulsa, OK)
CHAPTER TWENTY-SIX
Alibi’s and Frankie’s—Out and Proud in OKC (Oklahoma City, OK)
CHAPTER TWENTY-SEVEN
Pearl Bar—Becoming Human (Houston, TX)
CHAPTER TWENTY-EIGHT
Sue Ellen’s—A Queer Bar Empire (Dallas, TX)
CHAPTER TWENTY-NINE
Herz—How to Make an Unlikely Ally (Mobile, AL)
CHAPTER THIRTY
My Sister’s Room—When Your Health Insurance Fails, Your Lesbian Bar Shows Up (Atlanta, GA)
CHAPTER THIRTY-ONE
The Lipstick Lounge—Take Me to Church (Nashville, TN)
CHAPTER THIRTY-TWO
Babe’s of Carytown—The Tale of Two Vickies (Richmond, VA)
CHAPTER THIRTY-THREE
Hershee Bar—A Thirty-Five-Year Fight for Queer Space (Norfolk, VA)
PART FIVE: MASSACHUSETTS—COMING HOME
CHAPTER THIRTY-FOUR
Femme Bar—For Dianté (Worcester, MA)
CONCLUSION
Acknowledgments
Notes
Index
