Lesbian Bar Project

The Lesbian Bar Project is a campaign created by Erica Rose and Elina Street to "celebrate, support, and preserve the remaining lesbian bars in the US." The project launched on October 28, 2020 with a PSA video narrated by Lea DeLaria that announced a 30-day fundraising campaign to support what were thought to be the last 15 lesbian bars left in the country, many of which were financially threatened by the COVID-19 pandemic.[1] A second phase followed in June 2021 in connection with Pride Month, including the release of a short documentary, and a three-part docuseries was released on National Coming Out Day 2022.

Lesbian Bar Project
Mission statement"To celebrate, support, and preserve the remaining lesbian bars in the United States."
Commercial?No
Type of projectFundraising, awareness campaign, cultural
LocationNew York, New York, U.S.
FounderErica Rose
Elina Street
Key peopleLea DeLaria
The Katz Company
Established28 October 2020 (2020-10-28)
Websitewww.lesbianbarproject.com

History

Lesbian bars have been in decline across the United States since the 1980s, with more than two hundred having closed due to demographic changes, the wage gap and other city-specific reasons.[2][3] The Lesbian Bar Project was created by New York City-based filmmakers Elina Street and Erica Rose.[4] In fall 2020 the friends reminisced about one of their last night's out at Brooklyn lesbian bar Ginger's before it shuttered due to the COVID-19 pandemic. They decided to create a fundraiser to provide financial support to lesbian bars across the country.[4] They also noted that the number of bars has dwindled, as there were approximately 200 lesbian bars in the United States in the 1980s and few remained.[5]

On October 28, 2020, the Project was announced with a YouTube PSA video co-directed by Rose and Street and narrated by Lea DeLaria.[6] The video launched a 30-day fundraising campaign, which featured photographs of the bar interiors and testimonials from the owners.[5] The fundraiser closed on November 26, 2020.[7] By October 2020, they project had raised $260,000.[8]

Virtual events for the project are ongoing, with proceeds going to the Lesbian Bar Project Pool Fund, which are distributed between the 13 participating lesbian bars, as two (Sue Ellen's and Pearl Bar) opted out of receiving funds.[4][6][9] Among these virtual events was a November 2020 episode of the podcast Dyking Out, which featured performances from comedians including Lea Delaria, Sydnee Washington, and Cameron Esposito.[1]

Documentaries

In 2020, the directors announced plans to develop a series of documentaries to highlight lesbian bars throughout America, with a longer term goal of international features.[4][6] In June 2021, for Pride Month, Street and Rose released a short documentary on YouTube titled The Lesbian Bar Project with executive producer Lea Delaria and sponsorship from Jägermeister.[3] On October 11, 2022, National Coming Out Day, a three-part docuseries with DeLaria as executive producer was released on The Roku Channel, with a focus on one bar in each episode of the series.[10][11][12]

Producers

The Lesbian Bar Project is produced in collaboration with Jägermeister through its Save the Night campaign.[4][3]

Cubbyhole (New York City)
Henrietta Hudson (New York City)

These bars were identified by the Lesbian Bar Project as the last 15 lesbian bars in the United States, although other sources put the number at 21:[2][6]

Operational

Since closed

Subsequent additions

After the Project was launched, the co-directors named lesbian bars they initially overlooked:[24]

  • Alibi's (Oklahoma City, Oklahoma)
  • Babes of Carytown (Richmond, Virginia)
  • Boycott Bar (Phoenix, Arizona)
  • Cash Nightclub and Lounge (Phoenix, Arizona)
  • Frankie's OKC (Oklahoma City, Oklahoma)
  • Wild Side West (San Francisco, California)

Since the project was launched, additional lesbian bars have opened. They include:

  • The Lady's Room (Largo, Florida)[25]
  • Mother, a femme focused queer bar in San Francisco[26]
  • Slammies on High (Columbus, Ohio)[27]
  • The Ruby Fruit (Los Angeles, California)[28]
  • The Bush (Brooklyn, New York)
  • The Sports Bra (Portland, Oregon)
  • Femme (Worcester, Massachusetts)


Currently, there are 23 open lesbian bars in the United States.

References
  1. Alejandro, Gabrielle (19 November 2020). "Dyking Out with The Lesbian Bar Project". AfterEllen. Archived from the original on 28 January 2021. Retrieved 27 December 2020.
  2. "21 lesbian bars remain in America. Owners share why they must be protected". PBS NewsHour. 2021-06-10. Archived from the original on 2021-06-12. Retrieved 12 June 2021.
  3. Compton, Julie (June 3, 2021). "'The Lesbian Bar Project' chronicles the decline of women's queer spaces". NBC News. Archived from the original on 12 June 2021. Retrieved 23 November 2022.
  4. Hoeffner, Melissa Kravitz (7 December 2020). "America's Lesbian Bars Are Dwindling—This Project Wants to Change That". Condé Nast Traveler. Archived from the original on 2020-12-16. Retrieved 2020-12-27.
  5. Romano, Andrea (2020-11-04). "There Are Only 15 Lesbian Bars Left in the U.S. — Here's How You Can Support Them". Travel + Leisure. Archived from the original on 2020-12-30. Retrieved 2020-12-27.
  6. Lichtenstein, Isabelle (2020-10-29). "There Are Only 15 Lesbian Bars Left In America. The Lesbian Bar Project Wants To Save Them". GO Magazine. Archived from the original on 2020-11-30. Retrieved 2020-12-27.
  7. Wallace, Lindsay Lee (2020-12-23). "The Lesbian Bar Project Raises Over $100,000 to Protect 15 of Our Last Lesbian Bars". Autostraddle. Archived from the original on 2020-12-26. Retrieved 2020-12-27.
  8. Lavietes, Matt (2021-10-15). "James Bond walks into a gay bar. But should he?". Archived from the original on 2021-10-18. Retrieved 2021-10-18.
  9. Lichtenstein, Isabelle (2020-11-18). "Join The Lesbian Bar Project For A Virtual Roundtable Hosted By GO's Dayna Troisi". GO Magazine. Archived from the original on 2020-11-30. Retrieved 2020-12-27.
  10. "TELEVISION Lea DeLaria celebrates premiere of 'The Lesbian Bar Project'". Windy City Times. October 8, 2022. Archived from the original on 23 November 2022. Retrieved 23 November 2022.
  11. Cahillane, Mollie (June 15, 2022). "Roku and Jägermeister Team Up for Streaming Series The Lesbian Bar Project". AdWeek. Archived from the original on 23 November 2022. Retrieved 23 November 2022.
  12. Kish, Robin (September 23, 2022). "The Lesbian Bar Project Drops Trailer For Upcoming Docuseries". GO. Archived from the original on 23 November 2022. Retrieved 23 November 2022.
  13. Capps, Kriston (June 25, 2021). "How America's Last Lesbian Bars Survived the Pandemic". Bloomberg.com. Archived from the original on 2021-06-30. Retrieved 2021-06-30.
  14. Perez, Pattrik (2021-06-05). "Nationwide effort looks to preserve lesbian bars, including last remaining one in Colorado". KMGH. Archived from the original on 2021-06-05. Retrieved 12 June 2021.
  15. Alfonseca, Kiara (26 June 2021). "The last lesbian bars struggle to survive, advocates say, putting landmarks of queer history in danger". ABC News. Archived from the original on 2021-06-29. Retrieved 2021-06-30.
  16. "How to Support San Diego's Queer Community During Pride Month". Thrillist. 8 June 2021. Archived from the original on 2021-06-26. Retrieved 2021-06-30.
  17. Sprayregen, Molly (30 December 2020). "There are only 15 lesbian bars left in the U.S. & they're fighting to stay open in 2021". LGBTQ Nation. Archived from the original on 2021-05-20. Retrieved 2021-06-30.
  18. "Lesbian Bars Have Dwindled Since 1980. A Nashville Owner Explains Why They're Needed". NPR.org. Archived from the original on 2021-06-30. Retrieved 2021-06-30.
  19. Bailey, Brittany (11 June 2021). "Slammers standing strong as one of few lesbian bars left in the country". 10tv.com. Archived from the original on 12 June 2021. Retrieved 12 June 2021.
  20. "Sue Ellen's Revival Is a Homecoming for Dallas' Queer Community". D Magazine. 2021-06-07. Archived from the original on 2021-06-24. Retrieved 2021-06-30.
  21. "Dallas' only lesbian bar Sue Ellen's reopens June 4, after being closed nearly a year". Dallas News. 2021-06-03. Archived from the original on 2021-06-24. Retrieved 2021-06-30.
  22. Specker, Lawrence (2023-04-28). "Mobile's Herz, one of nation's last lesbian bars, has closed". AL.com. Retrieved 28 April 2023.
  23. Wright, Jeni (3 March 2021). "With closure of Philly's only lesbian bar, we lose another safe space for queer women | Opinion". Inquirer.com. Archived from the original on 11 June 2021. Retrieved 11 June 2021.
  24. Srikanth, Anagha (2020-11-12). "A new campaign is trying to save the last 15 lesbian bars in the country". TheHill. Archived from the original on 2020-11-13. Retrieved 2020-12-27.
  25. Harlan, Andrew (2023-04-18). "Fundraiser launched to save The Lady's Room, one of the only lesbian bars in Florida". Retrieved 2023-04-28.
  26. Sieving, Andrew (2023-02-17). "Meet Mother – San Francisco's newest queer bar opens in the Mission District". GayCities Wanderlust Blog. Retrieved 2023-07-14.
  27. "Columbus' newest LGBTQ+ bar Slammies is a 'safe space for all to come in'". 2023-04-14. Retrieved 2023-04-28.
  28. Rao, Tejal (2023-04-01). "The Lesbian Bar Isn't Dead. It's Pouring Orange Wine in Los Angeles". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2023-06-20.
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