A history of queer bars as a safe space for the LGBTQ+ community
This story is part of the Queer Current segment, covering the most pivotal issues in the LGBTQ+ community
Queer Bars, such as Providence’s EGO, are a center for queer art and community. The rise of such bars accelerated post-WWII, but the rise has since faced many challenges. Hate crimes, social judgment, and legal challenges, some of which have reached the Supreme Court, such as Stoumen v. Reilly, have tried to end queer bars. Despite these challenges, queer bars have persisted. California has the most of any state with 128, and in terms of gay bars per 1 million residents, Delaware has the largest ratio with 13 bars.
In Providence, EGO is one of the most well known queer bars. It opened in 2013 by club promoters Rafael Sanchex and the late Chris Harris. “(Harris and I) were just producers and club promoters and we always dreamt of having the club,” said Sanchez in an interview with the Brown Daily Herald. “So we just decided back in 2012 to look for a space and just open a club and that’s how EGO was born.”
The bar eventually grew to be a staple of Providence nightlife, featuring many themed nights and home to drag ensembles. EGO Babes, the group, occupied a residency-like role at the club. The four queens chosen were Annie B. Frank, Complete Destruction, YUNG ONYX and Pulp. The group performed every Thursday.
Furthermore, the themed nights included Detention Thursdays, Twerk Fridays, Latin Sundays, and more. This was to create the atmosphere of inclusivity. According to Sanchez, these represent different parts of the community.
“For us, it’s very important, from the staff that we hire to the music that we play to different theme nights, that we cater to everyone as much as we can as opposed to one group of the community,” said Sanchez.
Like EGO, across the nation, there has been a rise of queer bars. Unclosed Media, an investigative media company providing objective and nonpartisan journalism that examines anti-LGBTQ+ ecosystems, mapped every single LGBTQ+ nightlife location in the United States.
Data based off of the 2024 census of gay bars and clubs by sociologists and Oberlin College Professor, Greggor Matson, proposed that the State with the most bars is California, with 128 bars, followed by Texas in 2nd with 67 bars.
However, the ratio of gay bars per million residents across the nation brings different results to the table, according to Unclosed Media. For their populations, Rhode Island with 5.39 bars, D.C. with 8.54, and Delaware with 13 have the greatest number of bars for their populations.
Furthermore, blue states tend to have more gay bars per person. States that voted blue tend to have more gay bars per person. States that voted blue in 2024 have more bars per person, but there is a moderate correlation.
Additionally, Lesbian and POC focused gay bars are harder to find. For example, there are 0 in Rhode Island and Massachusetts with 1. Again, California has the most with 7. With this, data found that while 66% of LGBTQ+ bars appear to cater to both men and women, and 24% cater primarily to men.
Per 2025 data from the The Lesbian Bar Project, there are 36 lesbian bars across the country. That is just 4.8% of all queer bars.
“There are now individuals, increasingly, who identify as LGBTQ+ who don’t necessarily feel safe or empowered in a gay bar,” said Amin Ghaziani, an urban sexualities researcher at the University of British Columbia.
Now: how did we get here? The rise of queer bars began to accelerate significantly in the post-WWII era, particularly in the 1940s and 1950s. However, things were not always easy when they were upcoming. Businesses were often targeted by organized crime and police raids, and often had to pay bribes to both in order to remain in business. They could’ve been charged with vagrancy, loitering, lewd acts, and wearing a disguise for dressing in drag. Furthermore, there was always a risk of revoking the bar’s liquor license if officers caught patrons in “certain acts.”
In 1951, in the legal case Stoumen v. Reilly, the California Supreme Court ruled that a bar’s liquor license couldn’t be revoked due to a “disorderly house” because it catered to LGBTQ+ individuals. Then, they drafted a new law that allowed for the removal of liquor licenses for places that were “resorts for prostitutes, pimps, panderers, or sexual perverts.”
That same year, the court case Vallegra v. The Department of Alcoholic Beverage Control required “something more” than the mere presence of homosexuals in a California bar for authorities to revoke a liquor license. “Something more” was not defined by the Supreme Court other than “public displays that manifest sexual desires.” This open kind of wording still allowed for the closing of queer bars.
In 1967, Miami prohibited issuing liquor licenses to establishments that had employed homosexuals, selling liquor to homosexuals, and allowed two or more homosexuals to congregate on the premises.
Additionally, in that same year, New York and New Jersey established a difference between homosexual status and homosexual conduct. However, homosexual conduct could still lead to a police raid.
This led up to the Stonewall Riots in 1969, as clientele were sick of being harassed just for drinking inside a bar. The riot began June 28, 1969. After a raid on the same day, people started gathering outside the bar. After a lesbian was hit when going into a car, it caused people to start throwing pennies, bottles, stones, and other objects.
Quickly, this escalated into full blown riots. Police, a writer, and some prisoners barricaded themselves inside the bar. The rioters attempted to set fire, but eventually the fire department dispersed the rioters. However, protests continued in the area for the next 5 days.
The Stonewall riots didn’t start the movement, but was the big push for more LGBTQ+ activism. It led to the creation of many gay rights organizations, and opened the door for more resources and safe spaces for the community. It got us to where we are today across the nation.
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