Bum Bum Bar, Landmark Lesbian Bar Closes After Over Two Decades

The NYC LGBT Historic Sites Project, an organization which preserves and highlights sites connect to New York’s LGBT community, announced in a press release on March 1, 2019, that Bum Bum Bar located in Queens, New York permanently closed at the end of 2018.

The bar opened in the 90s and had three generations of LGBT owners. It is unclear why the closure occurred, as bar owners could not be reached for comment.

Pronounced “boom boom,” the bar leaves only three lesbian bars in New York. Bum Bum Bar attracted a mixed crowd, but primarily Latina, working-class lesbians. It was also gay operated and owned.

Co-Director of the NYC LGBT Historic Sites Project Ken Lustbader said that it shows the sad state on nightlife for women in the LGBT community. Bum Bum Bar was one of the few places that gave LGBT women a safe place to meet each other.

The bar had a capacity of 175 people. It featured a large dance floor and held an annual pride event and regularly participated in the Pride Parade for Jackson Heights.

With the closing of Bum Bum’s, the three remaining lesbian bars in New York are Ginger’s Bar located in Park Slope, Brooklyn, and Cubbyhole and Henrietta Hudson both situated in Greenwich Village.

Written by Barbara Sobel

Sources:

Jackson Heights Post: Bar, Roosevelt Avenue Lesbian Bar, Closes After More Than 2 Decades
NYC LGBT Historic Sites Project: With Bum Bum Bar Closed, Only Three Lesbian Bars Remain in New York City

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