Other bars like the Leather Stallion had similar policies. No ladies around.” In 1985, the Midwest Regional Discrimination Response Service received complaints against the 620 Club for refusing to admit women. The first time that the reporters had tried to gain entry, the doorman had responded, “This is a men’s bar. In 1977, reporters for the PLAIN DEALER writing an article on the gay bar scene noted the bar’s continued policies against admitting women. In 1975, the Cleveland Gay Political Union boycotted the 620 Club on Frankfort Avenue because it refused to admit women. The organization responded by organizing volunteers to test the discriminatory policy and pursued legal action against the bar.ĭiscrimination against women at gay bars has also served as a point of mobilization for the gay community. In 1985, the organization mobilized against the Ritz, a bar in Cleveland that accepted members of the gay community on Sundays, which had been the subject of complaints of discrimination against Black men and women attempting to enter.
The Midwest Regional Discrimination Response System, a project of Black and White Men Together, formed in order to report instances of racial discrimination within the gay and lesbian community and discrimination against the community. Gay bars maintained their presence in Cleveland, and they were significant for gay publications like HIGH GEAR which used them as points of distribution, but they were no longer the only places in which to socialize openly and safely.Īlthough Cleveland’s gay bars have been valuable spaces for members of the gay community to gather, their patrons have not always been treated in an equitable manner.ĭiscrimination against Black patrons at gay bars has been a significant problem that many members of the gay community have mobilized against. Other organizations, such as OVEN PRODUCTIONS, provided space for lesbians to come together for cultural events like art exhibits, films, concerts, and plays. In 1977, the opening of the offices of LESBIAN/GAY COMMUNITY SERVICE CENTER OF GREATER CLEVELAND provided a space for members of the gay community to socialize, organize politically, and share resources and information. This area is still home to many gay bars today (2022).Īs the gay liberation took hold in Cleveland in the 1970s, members of the gay community created new gathering spaces that served as alternatives to the gay bars. During this time, the area around Clifton Boulevard was already a significant part of the gay bar scene that included other venues the Nantucket Lounge, across from the Pickwood.
The CADILLAC LOUNGE closed in late 1970, but other bars owned by Gloria Lenihan like the Pickwood Lounge on Clifton Avenue remained popular spots for Cleveland’s gay and lesbian community. The Leather Stallion was a popular gay bar that opened in the 1970s in the downtown area and has remained open since. In the 1970s, Cleveland had dozens of gay bars frequented by gay men and lesbians in the community.
The King’s Room in CLEVELAND HEIGHTS, situated at Taylor and Cedar, had an almost exclusively gay patronage, as did the Shaker Club in SHAKER SQUARE. Gay bars also opened in the suburbs surrounding Cleveland. Another popular spot was The Orchid, which opened at East 105th Street and Euclid Avenue before moving to another location downtown. Adele’s Bar at East 115th Street and Euclid Avenue was one such spot, where students from the nearby CASE INSTITUTE OF TECHNOLOGY and WESTERN RESERVE UNIVERSITY would gather alongside members of Cleveland’s gay community.
In the 1950s and 1960s, Cleveland’s gay bar scene grew considerably, as did the number of bars that were not exclusively gay, but gay-friendly.