"Between the months of April to June, it was absolutely impossible, it was a nightmare." We were more a club-type of lounge establishment," Minko said. "Because Alibi is not, was not, a restaurant. See, like most gay bars, Alibi - one of the only gay- and Black-owned businesses in Harlem - was not accustomed to making money with curbside takeout. He has kept a remarkably upbeat attitude, considering the financial setback. "Like the kids say, 'The struggle is real,'" Minko said with a laugh. Someone who will be a part of that comeback is Alexi Minko, even though for a period it was touch-and-go for his bar, Alibi Lounge.
And Randy Wicker, on the far end of the bar in that photo, was one of those men.
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Download for FREE!īut you could easily argue that a certain black-and-white photograph - showing a group of men being denied a drink - laid the groundwork for the gay bars of today.
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"Disorderly people were considered homosexuals." "After prohibition, the State Liquor Authority is formed, which has a regulation that basically says if you serve people who are disorderly you can lose your license," Lustbader said. You'd have to either be in possession of an underground guidebook listing places considered "safe" or rely on word of mouth. "They were bottle clubs, you had a sign, a fictitious name in many cases to get in." "In many cases, they were private clubs with bouncers at the door," Lustbader said. "So bars became really safe spaces."īut the gay bar of the past was much different than the one we think of today where every inch is covered in rainbow flags. "People could lose their jobs, their families, employment, religious associations," Lustbader added.