UCI Podcast: The history of gay bars in America

Every June, the United States celebrates Pride Month, commemorating the 1969 uprising at the Stonewall Inn that inspired a global movement toward LGBTQ+ equality. The rich history of gay bars leading up to and since the Stonewall Riots is thoroughly explored in "The Bars Are Ours: Histories and Cultures of Gay Bars in America, 1960 and After," written by Lucas Hilderbrand, UC Irvine professor and chair of film and media studies. The combination of a dearth of books investigating the history of gay bars and the closure of many gay bars around the nation catalyzed Hilderbrand’s motivation to tackle what he calls an “ambitious project” to “look at the role of gay bars in shaping community politics, subcultures and the ways in which we imagine what queer public life could be in the United States.” In this episode of The UCI Podcast, Hilderbrand shares how bars are powerful community cornerstones; what he learned on his extensive research journey examining archival accounts in all corners of the U.S.; and why he chose to inform this unique history with anecdotes, stories and even musical references. Playlists to accompany the book can be found on both YouTube and Spotify. The music for this episode, titled “The Gentlemen,” was provided by DivKid via the audio library in YouTube Studio.