The reality is that what we often call gayborhoods are going away. We lose the cultural vitality that happens when our creatives or creative folks are inhabiting the same space.” “When we lose the gayborhoods, we lose a lot more than a few taverns we lose the political power that comes when we are concentrated in specific precincts and have the ability to elect our own and defeat our enemies. We often think of gentrification as displacing communities of color. It is also true that it impacts the LGBTQ+ community. The New York Times described it as a “straightening.” One of the most notable examples of this is what happened to New York City’s West Village. “The gays take a neighborhood, turn it cute, and then the straights come in,” says Scott Craig, who is one of the owners of L.A. “This is generalizing, but I think there’s truth in that.” gay bar Akbar, in the Silver Lake neighborhood. Silver Lake was once was a major hub for the queer community.
In fact, one of the first demonstrations in America protesting police brutality against LGBTQ+ people took place at Black Cat Tavern on Sunset Boulevard. But Craig, who has lived in the area for decades, says Silver Lake is no longer the gay hub it used to be. “When I first moved here, it was inexpensive to live here,” Craig told me. “West of Hollywood was where the pretty boys were. Silver Lake was where the leather daddies were.
