With COVID-19  devastating much of the country’s nightlife, many restaurants and bars have been hurting, especially the last standing 15 lesbian bars across America. 

Erica Rose, director and co-founder of the Lesbian Bar Project, February 16, 2021. Photo Courtesy of Erica Rose.

Erica Rose, a Brooklyn-based filmmaker, alongside her friend Elina Street banned together to create the Lesbian Bar Project, a four-week fundraiser in the fall of 2020.

“Our goal was to spread the message, spread the word, spread the urgency, and raise money to give some assistance to the bars,” said Rose. 

As a filmmaker, Rose wanted it to be a film project. So she and her team produced a 90-second PSA video to shed light on the significance of these spaces. 

They teamed up with Jägermaester’s #SAVETHENIGHT, an initiative created to support the nightlife community, and gained immense exposure to successfully raise $117,504 to distribute between the 15 bars. 

Well before the pandemic, lesbian bars have been on the decline. According to Rose, this has been an ongoing issue caused heavily by gentrification amid other factors. 

“These spaces are getting devoured by rising rents. They are getting devoured by a client base that is being squashed by heterosexual people. It’s being devoured by now the pandemic,” said Rose. 

It wasn’t until the pandemic acted as a catalyst forcing Rose to take stock of what was most precious to her that she was surprised to learn there were only 15 lesbian bars left. A number nowhere near resemblant of the 8.5 million queer women in the United States. 

“There needs to be space for people to grow, and learn, and experiment. And the fact that there are so few means that we really need to realize how precious those few are,” said Ashley Coia, a New York-based actor.

Along with gentrification bringing in younger generations, it brought with them the world of online dating and a wider acceptance of the LGBTQ+ community, lessening the need for queer-centric spaces. However, the importance of these spaces remains crucial, as they offer many a safe place to experiment without unwanted and unwelcome spectators. 

“It was the space that I went the most when I was trying to find myself as a queer woman,” said Coia. “Spaces like Cubbyhole I would go because I just felt so safe there. I could hit on a woman and not worry that a man was going to come up and harass me for it.”

A bar is more than a place to drink in the queer community, it often acts as a creator of community, a place to socialize. 

“What a bar to me is, is a place where you can meet all walks of life,” said Rose. “Walking into Cubbyhole and seeing queer women together and the comradery and the friendship and the community. I was drawn, I was hooked.”

Ali Clayton, a comedian from North Carolina, February 16, 2021. Photo Courtesy of Ali Clayton

For Ali Clayton, a comedian who has been sober since 2018, it was difficult for her to go to social events that involved drinking when she first recovered. But Henrietta Hudson, another lesbian bar in Manhattan offered alternative ways, like trivia nights and dancing, for Clayton to enjoy herself in good company. 

Clayton described the emotions that the atmosphere of queer spaces elicits as “freeing” and “validating.” 

She expressed that exclusive spaces made for lesbians promote a safe place and different energy that allows her to feel confident to hit on a woman without the fear that she might be straight. 

Despite the waning number of lesbian bars, The Lesbian Bar Project’s efforts prove the vitality of the lesbian community, showing that they won’t let their spaces be eradicated.

And as long as things go as planned, The Cubbyhole Bar hopes to reopen in March, and Rose can’t wait to join her friends and her community to celebrate the bar’s rebellion.

“I always believe that queer women are the most loyal audience,” said Rose. “If you give us something…we will show up.”

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“Art and activism go hand-in-hand. Artists can physically see the emotion that people are experiencing, the trauma, the disregard, the bloodshed. It’s a mark of what is occurring. It’s another way to write history and to keep records,” said Smith. 

During the month of June there have been more searches for black-owned businesses throughout the country. According to Google Trends data, searches for “how to support black owned businesses” saw a 133% increase from June 1 to June 7. 

“Because of the recent events with George Floyd and Breonna Taylor there’s been a resurgence of people really wanting to support black businesses, and that has positively affected my business,” she said. “But because something so traumatic positively affected my business, I feel like it’s my responsibility as a black business owner to make sure I’m giving back to the people who are giving to me.” 

Smith surpassed many obstacles when she decided she would make her passion, ceramics, into a business. She encountered many of the same challenges most people face when breaking into the art and small business worlds, i.e. applying for loans, building a customer base, marketing, etc. But she noticed an additional barrier when trying to enter art spaces to display her hand-built ceramic jewelry: the lack of diversity.

Smith’s Sio Ceramics hand-made earrings.

 “I was submitting work into shows and wasn’t getting accepted,” she said. “What criteria am I not fitting into that’s not making my work visible? And you know, I thought of all the institutional barriers that are within the art world; it’s very white and very male centric.” 

Instead of trying to find an art show or event she could fit in, Smith decided to create her own event to display her pieces. She reached out to A.J. Dunlap, the founder of Andie & AJ, an online platform that highlights diverse beauty to create an artistry group. From that partnership emerged Th3 Funktion, and the pair organized their first exhibition and fashion show in November of last year. 

“The purpose of making the show was combining two different art forms together, but also creating an inclusive space where people felt represented,” she said. “And a lot of the models that we had in the show were representative of different races and different gender identities.” 

Smith said visibility is key for black-owned businesses because they struggle the most with getting access to capital. According to a report by the Minority Business Development Agency, loan denial rates for minority businesses are three times higher than denial rates for non-minority businesses. 

“I think representation is super duper important,” Smith said. “Having opportunities where you see black businesses coming together make them more accessible. If you don’t see them, how do you really know they even exist?” 

She plans to donate to other local groups helping minorities in D.C. and continue to create black-owned business resources in Sio Ceramics’ Instagram page. According to her, there are many other ways to support these businesses besides donating or purchasing their products. 

“Imagine if everyone’s sharing one black business with a friend that they liked, that is just as important,” Smith said. “It’s about doing what’s within your power to make an impact, and a lot of the important things are the day-to-day interactions. Talk to your friends about black businesses you want to support.”

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Without a pathway to citizenship and ICE arrests still rising, some undocumented students are seeking help from their schools amid their fear of deportation.

New York University’s Immigration Defense Initiative, provides free legal support and advice for immigrant students, faculty, and their family members. Frances Dàvila, Staff Attorney of IDI, has been focusing on outreach within the NYU community.

She wants the NYU immigrant community to know that these services are available.

“I just worked with the LGBTQ student center and let them know my office is here to create some partnership – so if they come across any student that is not a US citizen, they can refer them to me,” said Dàvila.  

She has noticed more DACA students reaching out to her office and asking if they can travel abroad. Dàvila is also alarmed by the denial of DACA renewals.

“What I’ve seen more of is an increase in DACA renewals being denied. They’re being more of a stickler in what are the grounds for denial,” she said. “In one situation we had so much proof that the student was still eligible but US immigration services denied their request.”  

Dàvila said that immigration court gives anyone that is denied an application a notice to appear, which places them in removal proceedings. This new policy forces individuals to fight their case in immigration court. She believes this puts students at risk of deportation.

“You will forever be separated from your community if you’re deported. For so many it’s like the ultimate punishment because they can never come back to their community, let alone finish their education,” she said.

Dàvila is now highly encouraging students to apply for their green cards instead of renewing their DACA applications. Although the student must ask their parents to petition for them and pay an application fee of around $1,225 – the lengthy process appears to be more reliable than  DACA renewals. DACA renewals can cost up to $500.

CUNY’s John Jay College recently opened up their own Immigrant Student Success Center in October. It’s the only CUNY college to house a center dedicated to helping DACA, TPS, and immigrant students.

“It’s one of a kind. It was created so students wouldn’t fall through the cracks,” said Cynthia Carvajal, Immigrant Student Success Manager at John Jay College. “Students are coming in and asking more questions because the center exists.”

Carvajal hasn’t seen an increase in DACA renewals being denied but she has seen more complications and errors with the applications.

“I’ve seen them asking students for a piece of information then saying they don’t need it,” she said.

Carvajal believes that immigrant students are dealing with a lot of mental trauma.

“Every student I meet with, the conversation is almost always about stress and them crying. They’re scared of ICE targeting their communities or they’re guilty that they have DACA and a sibling doesn’t and on top of that their grades,” she said.

Growing up, Carvajal was undocumented and can relate to the students she helps today. She believes President Trump has spewed anti-immigrant and anti-black body rhetoric. Although it’s painful for her to see, she wants to focus on the positive.

“But there’s still places of empowerment – that students have cultivated for themselves through groups and to me it’s rejuvenating,” she said.

Arturo Lopez Rosas, 25, was approved for DACA when it was first introduced under the Obama administration. He lived in California at the time.

“It was really exciting for me. I felt like my life had been turned around right before starting college. I remember crying and getting really excited of the possibility of a pathway,” said Rosas.

He found the application process to be straightforward and applied on his own. It took him around four weeks to get a response.

Rosas became fearful of deportation when President Trump got elected in 2016 and made the decision to leave America. He booked a one way flight to Iceland and began to travel.

“It really freaked me out that, that was something I could go through. I didn’t want the PTSD of someone throwing me out,” he said.

Rosas said that traveling allowed him to stay away from the cultural insensitivity that he believes was ignited under the Trump administration. He also didn’t want to pay $500 to renew DACA.

Rosas now lives in Mexico and decided to return to rediscover his heritage. He wishes that there was an easier pathway to citizenship and fears that he won’t be able to return to America if something happens to his parents.

“I wanted a choice to create my own reality instead of going to work one day and having ICE officials in full police outfit trying to take me away,” he said.

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Standing underneath a parkway off-ramp in Washington Heights, Mike Bailey pointed to a syringe, half-full of blood and lying on a concrete barrier.

“Look at that,” said Bailey, a peer educator with the Washington Heights Corner Project. “The blood hasn’t even turned brown yet; someone just used this today. God knows what’s in there – hepatitis, HIV.”

Underneath the off-ramp near Amsterdam Avenue and 181st Street, Bailey motioned to the ground next to the barrier, which is littered with old syringes, old water packets and occasional junk food wrapper. An empty bottle of Duggan’s London Dry Gin and the bright orange needle caps stand out among the debris.

Used alcohol pads, syringes, needle caps and sterile water packets scattered on the ground beside a concrete street barrier underneath an expressway off-ramp near 181st Street and Amsterdam Avenue in Washington Heights on Feb. 19, 2017. The area is a popular spot in Washington Heights for homeless drug addicts to inject themselves. Photo by Razi Syed.

“We have hazardous-waste come and clean up here a couple times a week but it gets dirty again in no time,” said Bailey, 53, of the Upper West Side.

On Feb. 19, Bailey was making his regular weekend rounds through the George Washington Bridge Park, Highbridge Park and numerous street corners from 181st to 177th street, passing out clean syringes, alcohol pads, packets of sterile water, tourniquets and cookers, which addicts use in place of spoons to heat up water and dissolve heroin or cocaine for injection.

Bailey, a former cocaine user who once spent years living on the streets of Washington Heights, now walks his old haunts attempting to make sure addicts are able to use their drugs with clean equipment.

As heroin and prescription opioid use soared nationwide, deaths from drug overdoses in New York City have skyrocketed. The city’s most recent report, from August 2016, noted a 66 percent increase in drug overdose deaths from 2010 to 2015. Deaths related to heroin spiked 158 percent during that same period.

In Washington Heights, the Corner Project has seen a marked increase of injection drug users, with around 45 new people who sign up for the organization’s free syringe program each month, said Mark Townsend, a harm reduction activist and Corner Project staff member.

Bailey said his past experiences with drugs help him reach more addicts, pointing to the fact that he doesn’t wait in an office building for addicts to come to the Corner Project. Knowing that addicts aren’t always inclined to come into an unfamiliar space, Bailey said, “I go out and reach them where they are at.”

The Corner Project began informally in 2005 when several social workers and activists began walking around with backpacks to hand out clean needles to the addicts. The organization has grown to occupy a 9,000 square foot office at 181st Street and St. Nicholas Avenue, and has over 2,400 registered participants in its program. Around 70 percent of participants are using heroin and 40 percent are using cocaine, Townsend said.

In addition to the syringe program, the exchange provides hepatitis-C treatment, counsels participants on safer injecting, holds regular health clinics with volunteer physicians and gives training on Narcan, a drug which can reverse the effects of an overdose.

Bailey has seen first-hand what a syringe program can do to improve the lives of drug users, having started his involvement in the Corner Project in 2006 as a homeless IV cocaine user.

“This is where my beginning started before Washington Heights Corner Project,” he said on a recent Sunday night outreach shift, waving his hand in the direction of the George Washington Bridge Park and the surrounding streets. “I came up middle class in Jersey. But I started using; I came over to the city to cop because it was cheaper.”

Bailey first used crack cocaine when he was 22, after a friend introduced him to it.

“It was a three-minute high and then you do another (hit),” Bailey said. “I guess he figured, ‘If I get Mike on it, he can help support my habit.’ That’s the way it goes.”

For the next decade of his life, Bailey used crack cocaine, eventually switching to injecting powder cocaine. He spent his weekends driving over the George Washington Bridge into New York City to get cheaper drugs. By the time he was 35, in 1999, Bailey said he was in Washington Heights daily, on the streets or in jail.

Around two years ago, Bailey got off the street and into a housing program on the Upper West Side and became a peer educator for the exchange. He credits the program with helping him get the resources needed to leave homelessness behind.

In the years before the project, Bailey said addicts took extreme risks out of desperation. “We were all using the same stems (crack pipes), the same needles, the same cookers,” he said. “Without harm reduction, you’ll have widespread hep-C cases.”

Inside the Corner Project office, one Washington Heights heroin user, who declined to give his name, said he shared needles prior to becoming a participant. He counted himself lucky not to have contracted any diseases.

The exchange also helps operate a kiosk, near 177th Street and Haven Avenue, where needles can be safely disposed. Opened in May 2016, the kiosk is operated in collaboration with the city’s parks department.

The kiosk hasn’t gotten the amount of use the Corner Project hoped. Bailey said only several dozen syringes get collected in the kiosk each month, and that the location wasn’t ideal for drug users who use in more secluded parts of the park. Preliminary plans exist to expand these boxes into other parts of city.

Programs like the Corner Project operate on the philosophy that attempting to reduce harm is the best way to deal with addiction. The need for harm reduction programs has grown over the past decade, as opioid addiction has skyrocketed and deaths in New York City due to drug overdoses rose from 541 in 2010 to 937 in 2015.

Though critics contend needle exchanges enable drug users, the medical establishment has largely come out in support of the harm reduction model. A 2004 study by the World Health Organization, which studied needle exchange programs in the United States and Europe concluded that there is compelling evidence that the programs reduce the rates of hepatitis-C and HIV in drug-using populations, the programs are cost-effective and that the programs result in no major unintended negative consequences. The American Medical Association has also backed needle exchange programs as means of limiting disease spread.

However, needle exchanges retain a stigma in the eyes of many people and 16 states still lack syringe programs.

In early 2015, a rural Indiana county saw a spike in HIV, due to addicts sharing needles to inject prescription painkillers. Around 20 new cases of the virus were being reported each week at the height of the crisis. Local and state health officials encouraged the immediate opening of syringe exchange services.

Vice President Mike Pence, then-governor of Indiana, initially said he was morally opposed to needle exchanges on the grounds they supported drug abuse. Two months after the outbreak was detected, Pence shifted his position. Needles were distributed and dramatically slowed the rate of new HIV cases.

Commenting on the positions of politicians like Pence, Townsend said it’s “outrageous” that people oppose syringe programs in the 21st century.

“All we’re doing is making it so drug addiction isn’t a death sentence,” Townsend said.

Lately, the Corner Project has seen a trouble trend of younger drug users, said Samantha Olivares, an outreach worker.

“Lots of people come from Jersey that are 30 and under,” she said, noting that she has seen IV drug users as young as 14. The project has also stepped up online outreach in an attempt to reach younger people.

Harm reduction, at its heart, is about treating people with dignity, Olivares said.

“If I can help one person, or make one person smile each day, I feel like I’ve done something,” Olivares said. “I get high off of helping people and making them realize, ‘Even though you are a drug user, you’re somebody too. Your life’s worth living, you’re worth loving, you’re worth being here.’”

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“I always leave it on the window,” said Vasquez. “I keep it as my good luck charm and something that we do from the heart, something to give back to the community.”

He put the sign up after Sept. 11, 2001 and never thought to take it down. For the past 15 years he had helped more than 1,000 people to get ready for the important interview.

“If more people offered the same service to people who can`t afford it, that would be wonderful,” said Fred Werner, a regular customer.

His co-owner and wife of 35 years, Arelis Vasquez, said her husband`s manners charmed her from the first minute he approached her. Four kids and five grandchildren later he is still very romantic and hardworking, she said.

“He gets up early in the morning and makes sure he gets the job done,” said Mrs. Vasquez.

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