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When I type “lesbian bar” into a search engine, more than 75% of the listings contain bars that are no longer open. The lesbian pop-up events that are currently active are hard to find because they aren’t fully acknowledged or heavily promoted by the bars where they are located — usually only once a month, and at most weekly, if they’re lucky.
Which is why my mouth dropped when I discovered Sue Ellen’s in Dallas, Texas.
San Francisco and Los Angeles are cities known for having large lesbian and gay communities. Neither of the metropolitan Californian gayborhoods currently have a full-blown place dedicated to lesbian gatherings. Lesbian bars have been shutting down all over the country and seem to be reaching their final demise.
And yet here stood Kathy Jack, a lesbian icon and owner of a full blown lesbian bar. In Texas.
Kathy has owned Sue Ellen’s since 1989 and they’ve been in their current location since 2008. “I’ve been running lesbian bars for over 25 years,” she told AfterEllen when we paid the bar a visit during Dallas Pride weekend last October, thanks to Visit LGBT Dallas. Kathy Jack has a calm, yet assertive demeanor. She is extremely personable and you can see the compassion in her eyes. “It’s hard to maintain support but we host a lot of different types of events like open mic and live bands and dance parties, which motivate people to keep coming back.”
She shared with me the hurdles she has overcome during her decades of keeping this bar alive, and her feelings about running a lesbian bar in a world where lesbian spaces have continued to disappear. The bar is known as a haven for lesbians and LGBT people in the greater Dallas community.
The AfterEllen staff joined the dance floor where women are grinding to the music with smiles decorating their happy faces. “This is my second home,” says a regular patron gripping a glass of whiskey before turning to her partner for a long kiss — without the worry of unwelcoming onlookers.
“It keeps our community together.”
Be sure to check it out on the weekends when the crowds fill two floors, a dance floor, an outdoor patio, private lounges, and there are lesbians everywhere! Watch the video (above) for the full Sue Ellen’s nightlife experience! We’d also like to extend a very special thank you to the wonderful people at Visit LGBT Dallas for connecting us with Sue Ellen’s and Kathy Jack. Dallas is where all love is big love!
