Arts & Entertainment
Calendar: July 20
Parties, exhibits, concerts and more through July 26
‘Wild Night: A Burlesque Adventure,’ is coming to the Warehouse Theater on Saturday at midnight. (Photo courtesy Warehouse)
TODAY (Friday)
The HIV Working Group is doing outreach tonight at Town’s (2009 8th St., N.W.) Bear Happy Hour. It begins at 7 p.m. and tickets are $5. For more information, visit towndc.com or thedccenter.org.
Burgundy Crescent, a gay volunteer organization, needs volunteers today through July 25 to help with the AIDS Memorial Quilt on the National Mall. To participate, visit burgundycrescent.org.
Whitman-Walker Health is having HIV Testing at Arena Stage (1101 Sixth St., S.W.) tonight at 5:30 p.m. For details, visit whitman-walker.org.
Touchstone Gallery (901 New York Ave., N.W.) is hosting two exhibits, “3D Collage the Adventure” by David Alfuth and “Being Affected” by Charles St. Charles until July 29. Alfuth’s artwork features are surreal 3-D collages consisting of newspapers, cloth, pressed flowers and other flat objects. St. Charles’ exhibition portrays faces with various reactions to shared circumstances. The exhibit is free. For more information, visit touchstonegallery.com.
Phase 1 (525 8th St. SE) is hosting its “Red, White & Boobs with D.C. Gurly Show” starting at 7:30 p.m. This event will have a special guest, Miss Flora Bush. Cover charge is $5. For more information, visit phase1dc.com.
Waverly Street Gallery (4600 East-West Highway, Bethesday) is hosting the exhibition “Heard it Through the Grapevine,” paintings and collage by Ronnie Spiewak today from noon to 6 p.m. Access to the exhibition is free. For more information, visit waverlystreetgallery.com.
The Bachelor’s Mill (1104 8th St., S.E.) is having its happy hour today starting at 5 p.m. All drinks are half off until 7:30 p.m. After 9 p.m., admission is $15, and after 11 p.m. admission is $3. The party includes a pool, video gaming system and card tournaments. For details, visit thebachelorsmill.com.
Green Lantern (1111 14th St., Green Court, N.W.) is hosting its “Pop Goes the World” party tonight at 10 p.m. Cover charge is $5. For more information, visit greenlanterndc.com.
Saturday, July 21
A reception will be held tonight at 6 for artists John Gascot’s and MG Stout’s art exhibit at the D.C. Center (1318 U St. NW). Wine and refreshments will be served. Many or the paintings are inspired by or named after songs. The exhibit will be up through Sept. 8 and attendees can visit for free during the D.C. Center business hours. For more information, visit thedccenter.org.
Spunk-E Productions presents “Ink & Scruff” at Green Lantern (1111 14th St., Green Court, N.W.) tonight at 10 p.m. There’s a hot body contest, drink specials all night and music by DJ Tone. Cover is $5. For details, visit greenlanterndc.com.
Tilted Torch’s “Wild Night: A Burlesque Adventure” is at the Warehouse Theater (645 New York Ave. N.W.) tonight at midnight. This burlesque show allows audience members decide what happens in the story. The decisions will lead to consequences, danger and even death. General admission is $17. For more information, visit warehousetheater.com.
The Black Cat (1811 14th St., N.W.) tonight is hosting “Right Round,” its ‘80s alternative-pop dance night with DJ Lil’e. Tickets are $7 and doors open at 9:30. For more information, visit blackcatdc.com.
Town Danceboutique (2009 8th St., N.W.) is hosting an AIDS 2012 Conference Party tonight at 10 p.m. The party is to bring men together to kick off the conference weekend. The music is by DJ Chord. Cover is $8 before 11 p.m. and $12 after 11 p.m. There are $3 drinks before 11 p.m. A drag show starts at 10:30 p.m. For more information, visit towndc.com.
Sunday, July 22
Youth Score 2012 is hosting “Uniting an AIDS-Free Generation” today at the Bell Multicultural High School (3101 16th St., N.W.) from 11:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. This basketball and soccer tournament will feature games are for ages 13-24 with great prizes for participants. The event is free. For details, visit facebook.com/YouthScore2012.
The Kennedy Center (2700 F St., N.W.) is hosting the seven arts-related panels of the AIDS Memorial Quilt in its South Gallery. The show is free and will be up until July 27. The gallery is open daily between 10 a.m.-10 p.m. For more information, visit kennedy-center.org.
Monday, July 23
Cobalt (1639 R St., N.W.) is hosting its Martini Monday tonight at 10 p.m. There is no cover charge and martinis are $5. For more information, visit cobaltdc.com.
The Bachelor’s Mill (1104 8th St., S.E.) is offering half-price drinks all night long. A free pool and NFL, NBA and NCAA games will be on the flat screen TVs. Admission is free. For details, visit thebachelorsmill.com.
Tuesday, July 24
Cobalt (1639 R St., N.W) hosts its Flashback dance night with DJ Jason Royce starting at 10 p.m. There is no cover charge. For more details, visit cobaltdc.com.
Wednesday, July 25
The D.C. Center (1318 U St. NW) is hosting its Center arts meeting today at 5:30 p.m. Attendees are discussing things like chapbooks (handmade books of poetry), that are performed at Capturing Fire, the National Queer Spoken Word Summit, and Slam, a Busboys & Poets event. The meetings are free and occur on the fourth Wednesday of each month. For details, visit thedccenter.org.
Transgender Health Empowerment is hosting the benefit “Glam” at Omega (2122 P St., N.W.) tonight at 7 p.m. Admission is $10 at the door and the event will include drinks and a drag show. All proceeds goes toward HIV/AIDS services for the trans community in D.C. For more information, visit thedccenter.org or contact Evan Hempel at [email protected].
HIV Prevention Working Group, an HIV/AIDS prevention outreach, volunteer and education program, meets tonight at 7 p.m. at the DC Center (1318 U St. NW). For details, visit thedccenter.org.
Thursday, July 26
Lambda Sci-Fi book group (1425 S St., N.W.) meets tonight at 7 p.m. The book for this month is “Welcome to Bordertown,” an anthology edited by Ellen Kushner and Holly Black. For more information, visit lambdascifi.org.
Cobalt (1639 R St., N.W) is hosting its weekly Best Package Contest tonight at 9 p.m. There’s a $3 cover and there are $2 vodka drinks. Participants in the contest can win $200 in cash prizes. The event is hosted by Lena Lett and music by DJ Chord, DJ Madscience and DJ Sean Morris. For details, visit cobaltdc.com.
History
Julius’ Bar ‘sip-in’ laid groundwork for Stonewall
Tuesday marked 60 years since four gay activists held protest
While Stonewall is widely considered the birthplace of the modern LGBTQ rights movement in the U.S., a lesser-known protest inside a Greenwich Village bar three years earlier helped lay critical groundwork for what would follow.
Tuesday marked 60 years since the Julius’ Bar “sip in.”
On April 21, 1966, four gay rights activists — Dick Leitsch, Craig Rodwell, John Timmons, and later Randy Wicker — walked into Julius’ Bar and staged what would become known as a “sip-in” to challenge state liquor regulations on serving alcoholic beverages to gay men — with a drink.
Modeled after the sit-ins that challenged racial segregation across the American South, the protest was designed to confront discriminatory practices targeting LGBTQ patrons in public spaces.
At the time, the Mattachine Society — one of the country’s earliest gay rights groups — was actively pushing back against policies enforced by the New York State Liquor Authority. One of those policies could have resulted in the loss of liquor licenses for serving known or suspected gay men and lesbians. The participants had visited multiple establishments, openly identified themselves as homosexual, and requested a drink — with the anticipation of being denied.
Their final stop was Julius’, where reporters and a photographer had gathered to document the moment. When Leitsch declared their identity, the bartender covered their glasses and refused service, reportedly saying, “I think it’s against the law.” The next day, the New York Times ran a story with the headline, “3 Deviates Invite Exclusion by Bars,” cementing the moment in the public record.
Though initially framed with disrespect — the term “sip-in” itself was coined as a play on civil rights protests — the action marked a turning point. It brought national attention to the systemic discrimination LGBTQ people faced and helped catalyze changes in how liquor laws were enforced. In the years that followed, the protest contributed to the emergence of licensed, more openly gay-friendly bars, which became central social and organizing spaces for LGBTQ communities.
The Washington Blade originally covered when the bar was officially added to the National Park Service’s National Register of Historic Places in 2016.
Today, historians and advocates increasingly recognize the “sip-in” as a key pre-Stonewall milestone. According to the New York City LGBTQ Historic Sites Project, the protest not only increased visibility of the early LGBTQ rights movement but also exposed widespread surveillance and entrapment tactics used against the community.
Marking the 60th anniversary of the event, commemorations have taken place in New York and across the country. Reflecting on its enduring legacy, Amanda Davis, executive director of the NYC LGBTQ Historic Sites Project, spoke about the event.
“Julius’ Bar is a place you can visit and viscerally connect with history,” said Davis. “We’re thrilled to have solidarity locations across the country join us in commemorating the ‘sip-in’’s 60th anniversary and the queer community’s First Amendment right to peaceably assemble.”
For current stewards of the historic bar, the responsibility of preserving that legacy remains front of mind.
“It’s a privilege and a responsibility to be the steward of a place so important to American and LGBTQ history,” said current owner of Julius’ Bar, Helen Buford. “The events of the 1966 Sip-In here at Julius’ resonated across the country and inspired countless others to stand proud for their rights.”
The timing couldn’t have come at a more important moment, Kymn Goldstein, executive director of the June L. Mazer Lesbian Archives, explained.
“At a time when our community faces renewed challenges, coming together in resilience and solidarity reminds us of the power in our collective resistance,” Goldstein said.
The American Civil Liberties Union, an organization dedicated to defending rights and liberties guaranteed by the Constitution, is currently tracking 519 anti-LGBTQ bills across the U.S. The majority are targeted at restricting transgender rights — particularly related to gender-affirming care, sports participation, and the use of public bathrooms.
Some additional groups and bars that held their own “sip-in” as solidarity events to uplift this historic milestone are from across the country include:
Alice Austen House at Steiny’s Pub, Staten Island, N.Y.
Bellows Falls Pride Committee at PK’s Irish Pub, Bellows Falls, Vt.
Brick Road Coffee, Mesa, Ariz.
Brick Road Coffee, Tempe, Ariz.
Dick Leitsch’s Family at Old Louisville Brewery, Louisville, Ky.
The Faerie Playhouse & LGBT+ Archives Project of Louisiana at Le Cabaret, New Orleans
Harlem Pride & John Reddick at L’Artista Italian Kitchen & Bar, New York
JOYR!DE KiKi at Loafers Cocktail Bar, New York
Matthew Lawrence & Jason Tranchida / Headmaster at Deadbeats Bar, Providence, R.I.
Mazer Lesbian Archives at Alana’s Coffee, Los Angeles
New Hope Celebrates at The Club Room, New Hope, Pa.
Queer Memory Project at the University of Evansville Multicultural Student Commons / Ridgway University Center, Evansville, Ind.
Sandy Jack’s Bar, Brooklyn, N.Y.
St. Louis LGBT History Project at Just John Club, St. Louis
The LGBTQ+ Victory Fund National Champagne Brunch was held at Salamander Washington DC on Sunday, April 19. Gov. Andy Beshear (D-Ky.) was presented with the Allyship Award.
(Washington Blade photos by Michael Key)
The umbrella LGBTQ sports organization Team D.C. held its annual Night of Champions Gala at the Georgetown Marriott on Saturday, April 18. Team D.C. presented scholarships to local student athletes and presented awards to Adam Peck, Manuel Montelongo (a.k.a. Mari Con Carne), Dr. Sara Varghai, Dan Martin and the Centaur Motorcycle Club. Sean Bartel was posthumously honored with the Most Valuable Person Award.
(Washington Blade photos by Michael Key)
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