Anybody who has been to a gay bar knows that it's primarily a safe space for gay men, as well as straight women who don't want to be hit on by men. As a gay woman, it can be hard to find a space where I feel comfortable to freely be myself.
However, when it comes to lesbian bars, there are only 21 left in the entire country, and three of them are in New York City, where I live. By comparison, there are almost four times as many gay bars across the city, Time Out reported.
According to a June 2021 report by NY1, the three lesbian bars have suffered during the pandemic, including temporary closures. Despite the growth of online dating and a wider acceptance of gay people, there's still a real need for these bars, Lea DeLaria with The Lesbian Bar Project told NY1.
"There's a thing when you walk into a gay bar as a gay person, that straight people I don't think understand at all; where you just go, 'ah,' because, you know, you're in your safe space," DeLaria said. "If we lose these lesbian bars, where are we going to go for community? Where are we going to go, you know, to be together, to have our family?"
I'd never been to any of the three bars before, but I wanted to get a better understanding of their importance and whether I would feel more comfortable there than in other spaces. I was also interested to know what the differences were between the three bars when it came to music, dress code, costs, and general vibes — so I grabbed a friend and we went out.