Can straight people go to gay bars

Indeed, the first documented public queer demonstration occurred in Los Angeles on February 11,more than two years before the Stonewall riots, when a group of queer people protested the arrest of fourteen men by undercover police officers who waited until midnight on New Year's Eve when men kissed at the Black Cat Tavern in the Silver Lake district of Los Angeles.

The question of whether straight, cis people should be welcomed into queer spaces comes up time and time again – and there are no easy answers. Bars with no windows made it harder for police to see, arrest men who appeared femme or women who touched other women, and in different ways deemed queer.

The most literal form of closeting was to keep gay bars out of sight with no signage, entrances in back alleys, and no windows. Lin's recounting of the problematic history of gay bars is a clear reminder that queer history particularly in the Western tradition is rife with violence, prejudice, discrimination, and condemnation.

They were sanctuaries from oppressive policing and heteronormative culture. In addition to the arrests, the officers severely beat two bartenders and a woman who owned another gay bar in the area. Some feel that queer spaces, whether that’s a gay bar or an alcohol free get-together, should be reserved for LGBT+ people so they can express themselves freely.

I tell them to cross Santa Monica and walk down until they find a place they like. The latter was necessary because many municipalities had laws against serving alcohol to homosexuals. I had many worries as I entered the door and saw a narrow room packed with men.

In the years since I stepped into my first gay bar, queer acceptance has dramatically increased, and more recent generations of queer people are welcomed and comfortable in a variety of public spaces. Thirty seconds after my friend melted into the crowd, a man had his hand on my arm.

Some people think gay bars shouldn't be for cis straight people, but most of us think if they can be respectful and understand they're in a gay bar and not a straight bar then it's ok. While establishments that catered to queer people existed before this, gay bars and clubs as we know them first began popping up in the 20th century.

He smiled, trying not to laugh at my panic. This increased acceptance raises questions of the role and importance of gay bars and other queer spaces. I could no longer remember his name, and I could not hear his friend's name over the buzz of the men packed into a space that would have given the fire marshal a coronary.

I hug them all as they leave and find myself reminded that despite the increased gender and sexual identity fluidity of recent generations, someone new is always coming out. One of the young men in the group proudly shows me his ID. I give him money to tip the dancer.

Beyond the impact of the queer bar scene, the raid would later go on to inspire action within our community. By continuing to use our site, you agree to our Privacy Policy and Terms of Use. In an era where queer acceptance flourishes, the essence of gay bars evolves, igniting questions of belonging and identity.

A few minutes later, they asked me where they should go next.

He smiles broadly, walking shyly up to the handsome clad in the bare minimum. Minutes after my entry into the fraught history of gay bars, my friend handed me a drink and said, "I'm going to leave you now and go to the bathroom.

Should Straight People Attend :

In Gay Bar: Why We Went Out, an insightful history of gay bars, Jeremy Atherton Lin describes both the essential function of gay bars and the means that Western societies have used to keep them and their occupants closeted. Soon, I chatted with a group of young people who told me they had driven down from Bakersfield because "we had to; there's nothing up there.

But I did not have to fear a squad of police would rush into the bar to push any man who appeared femme or who dared to touch another man up against the wall, pulling their hands behind their backs and snapping on handcuffs. That’s why queer spaces are important to the LGBTQ community.

I was discovering the fraught history of gay bars at a relatively safe time.