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Who would have thought, Atlanta, a city buried deep in the south, as the gayest city in America.
Having lived in Los Angeles, i had my doubts about coming to Atlanta. I thought it was going to be hard trying to find gay people, let alone a gay community. It wasn't long till i was proved wrong. Atlanta night life offers an array of clubs and bars exclusively for the gay community. Now that i'm over the drinking age, i've visited most of the places and each has their own community. I even went to the infamous Eagle (leather bar) which was raided by the police not long ago.
A great example of how gay this city can be is when pride season comes around. Gay people from all over the south travel to Atlanta to celebrate being who they are. I, a guy who is out and open about his sexuality, wonders where all these guys hide all year around???? You don't see these beauties everyday.
Anyways, hope you enjoy reading the article.
http://www.ajc.com/news/atlanta/magazine-ranks-atlanta-as-278455.html
You don't love someone because they are beautiful, they are beautiful because you love them.
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Macky
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Really getting into it |
Location: USA
Registered: November 2008
Messages: 973
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Well, I think my city is doing great. It was always gay friendly. Or maybe it was and has changed. Don't really know. I left the active gay scene about 25 years ago, but at that time we had 3 male gay bars and 2 lesbian bars. There was some sad warring going on between the two. I once saw a couple of girls asked to leave a gay guy bar Ii was in. That was so sick. Hopefuylly it was a relic of the stone ages.
ANyway, great news about Atlanta. Who'da thunkit?
Max
Behold, how good and how pleasant it is
For brothers to dwell together in unity!
Ps 133:1 NASB
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I guess it's kinda sad that we rate how gay our cities are by the number of bars we habitate. I understand M's delight, Atlanta is a sweet town. But as he mentioned, he had to reach adulthood to discover these things.
I'm sure many of you will react like I do. I want to see more venues for gay youth, LGBT kids need a safe social environment to explore their feelings. And once the bar syndrome wears off, which happens pretty fast, where are the social outlets for adults from 40 on up?
I would rate a city welcoming when I find out there are dances, parties, sports and other entertainment for adults that don't require drinking. Kids need educational outlets, coffee bars, libraries and many of the same things as adults. So tell me Atlanta has those things as well and I'll agree it's the gayest city for all the LGBT community.
Age appears to be best in four things; old wood best to burn, old wine to drink, old friends to trust, and old authors to read. (Sir Francis Bacon 1561-1626)
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Chris,
Sorry for emphasizing more on the gay bars (so did the article for that matter), but according to the advocate, they rated cities based on much more than the number of bars.
For example, they rated cities based on how many openly gay officials it has, the number of gay households per capita, and activities the city has to offer.
When I was underaged, I used to attend a Youth Pride Center that provided a safe place for kids 13-24. In fact, I met so many great people my age because of Youth Pride. They had weekly meetings, parties, and many other activities for everybody to participate in. Of course, eventually I aged out. Now I explore different scenes.
Midtown, located in downtown Atlanta is place known for being gay friendly. Midtown is where most of the gay bars , gay friendly restaurants and shops are located. There is outwrite (popular gay operated book store and coffee shop), Caribou (popular coffee place I often meet with friends and sometimes do homework), etc. Piedmont park in midtown is a popular hanging out spot during the summer. Often you see families, gay couples, straight couples, and everything in between enjoying a day at the park. It is not strange to see guys holding hands in Midtown.
Other areas include East Atlanta, and Buckhead which are also very gay friendly.
Atlanta also has a couple free gay magazines that are circulated on a weekly basis. In them you can find anything gay related that might be going on in the city. It is like the gay yellow pages. Anything from the latest shows, to parties coming up. The magazines are great to advertize your gay friendly business.
For adults ages 40 and up... I do not know  I'm not that age yet. However, I'm sure there things to do that do not involve drinking.
All I'm saying is that Atlanta has a little something for everybody. Not into the bar scene? No problem, there are other things to do. Off the top of my head, something I haven't check out yet is the Atlanta Gay Men Chorus. I've heard they are pretty good.
This is why Atlanta might be one of the gayest city in America
[Updated on: Sat, 23 January 2010 04:09]
You don't love someone because they are beautiful, they are beautiful because you love them.
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Apparently having a gay friendly police force was not a requirement.
(\\__/) And if you don't believe The sun will rise
(='.'=) Stand alone and greet The coming night
(")_(") In the last remaining light. (C. Cornell)
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Well, that is up for debate. After all, Atlanta is in the south. Georgia is not gay friendly and we have a long way until laws can be changed to protect everybody no matter their sexual orientation.
You don't love someone because they are beautiful, they are beautiful because you love them.
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I'm glad to hear you fell on your feet, M. I did know a bit about Atlanta as one of the oddments I picked up was 'Atlantaboy' the gay guide to Atlanta.
But the raid on the Eagle seemed to me to indicate a less that satisfactory police force. Here we have cops joining in the gay pride parades.
Love
Anthony
BTW my initials are AJC; I think the Atlanta Journal-Constitution ought to pay me royalties.
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M, my comments were not aimed at you, but at what the Advocate chose to portray about gay life in Atlanta.
I used to subscribe to the Advocate years ago, but became upset with them for the very point I made above. I do still visit their website on occasion but if I had to comment I'd say they still seem to represent about one third of the LGBT community.
I grew up in the D.C. area and at 20 I was much like you, except I didn't drink. It's hard to stand (when could you ever find a seat?) in a bar without drinking and feel a part of the party. For party, party, party was the word of the day, at least until 1981 when the Plague came to town.
DC had one gay bookstore, one piano bar and one fledgling youth group back then. I worked with gay youth, volunteering when I could, painting walls and refinishing furniture at the center. We did what we could to give the kids a place of their own.
But the boy who attended youth meetings on Friday would more than likely be sitting on the steps by the entrance to a bar on Saturday night, boys 14, 15 and 16. We can never do enough for those kids but when they see the majority of men going to bars that's what they want, if only to be a part of the gay world.
English law has finally settled on 16 as the age of consent, a realistic goal for a gay boy to begin socializing. The US still has an unrealistic view of consent. And yet in the history of both cultures boys married young, went to work and started families. The gay community here is afraid of our youth, afraid of the portrayal gay men have in the media as molestors.
But before I rant, M...thank you for stepping up and giving some depth to an otherwise shallow Advocate story. Enjoy yourself and keep your eyes open for those older adult things to do in Atlanta. You might need them someday as we all do. :-*
Age appears to be best in four things; old wood best to burn, old wine to drink, old friends to trust, and old authors to read. (Sir Francis Bacon 1561-1626)
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On the contrary Acam, the Atlanta police "Out Officers Team" marched in the Pride Parade last year. In fact, the Atlanta pride committee announced Pastor Chris Glaser and Atlanta Police Department Officer Dani Lee Harris as the grand marshals for the 2009 Atlanta Pride parade.
Additionally, the Atlanta Police department has a GLBT (Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual and Transgender) Liaison Unit whose goal is to improve the relationship between the GLBT community and the Atlanta Police Department.
More than blaming the whole police department, i think we should point fingers at the people who call the shots. They are the ones who should know better. Lack of communication between the GLBT Liaison and a incompetent chief of police lead to the Eagle being raided and have the rights of innocent patrons violated (or at least i think so).
Not to mention, one of the police units that raided the Eagle was the notorious Red Dog Narcotics Unit which provides aggressive police presence in areas that have a high incidence of street drug sales, use, and drug related crimes. They have been under investigation numerous times, most famous for the shooting of a 92 year woman (http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/18328267/) whose house was searched for drugs.
I think it is very unfortunate things like these happen. Ultimately, the people at the top should be held accountable for allowing such violation of human rights to occur within their departments.
Again, just my opinion Not trying to defend the Atlanta Police Department as there is a long way to go till changes can occur. I'm just trying to provide an insighter's point of view.
You don't love someone because they are beautiful, they are beautiful because you love them.
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Macky
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Really getting into it |
Location: USA
Registered: November 2008
Messages: 973
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Sounds to me as though you know your shit, M. Folks like you are a valuable asset to any city.
Max
Behold, how good and how pleasant it is
For brothers to dwell together in unity!
Ps 133:1 NASB
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Re: I live in the gayest city in America 
