"There Goes the Gayborhood": Panel Discussion at The Seattle Public Library June 8
release date: May 20, 2019
Join Historic Seattle and Vanishing Seattle for a discussion on the history of LGBTQIA spaces and the changing nature of our city from 10:30 a.m. to noon Saturday, June 8 at the Central Library, 1000 Fourth Ave., Level 1, Microsoft Auditorium, 206-386-4636.
In the face of rapid redevelopment, how do we save the places that anchor Seattle’s LGBTQIA communities but may lack the architectural significance typically required for landmarking? A panel of preservationists, small business owners, and activists will discuss important community places and the challenges we face in making preservation more inclusive.
Panelists will include:
| Rich Freitas | A cultural landscape specialist for the National Park Service and serves on Seattle's Landmarks Preservation Board. Freitas's professional work supports the stewardship of historic landscapes across the country. He holds a Masters of Landscape Architecture from University of Washington, where he focused on the history and preservation of Pioneer Square's queer landscape. |
| Kevin McKenna | Historian, activist and educator. McKenna is an editor and contributor to the LGBTQIA section of the Seattle Civil Rights and Labor History Project. He has also worked with the Northwest Lesbian and Gay History Museum Project. |
| Sylvia O’Stayformore | A legend in Seattle’s drag community, O’Stayformore has performed in over 2000 shows throughout the region. She was voted Seattle’s Best Drag Show by Seattle Weekly and is currently the producer of Bacon Strip. O’Stayformore performs in Rainbow Bingo throughout the region and is a partner in the recently-established Palace Theatre & Art Bar in Georgetown. |
| Jeff Henness | Longtime owner of the iconic E. Pike Street leather and kink shop, Doghouse Leathers, Henness has been a fixture in his community for over 25 years. He recently completed the move of the store a couple blocks down the hill to the 108-year-old Neal Apartments building, where the store will continue to provide meeting space to community groups. |
| Steve Bennett | Owner of the Gaslight Inn, a Seattle Landmark, for over 30 years. In that time the house and business have assumed a significant role in the neighborhood's LGBTQ community, from its time as a refuge for grieving families devastated by AIDS to its use for political events for the state's first openly gay legislator and mayor. |
| Martha Manning | Owner of the Wildrose, Seattle's pioneering lesbian bar for over 30 years and the sole remaining lesbian bar north of Los Angeles. Martha and co-owner Shelley Brothers changed the women-only policy in place when they took over the business, creating a more inclusive space on Capitol Hill. The Wildrose is a cherished business that has given the LGBTQIA community a safe place to congregate on Capitol Hill. |
More information
Library events are free and everyone is welcome. Registration is requested, but not required. Parking is available in the Central Library garage for $8 on weekends.
The Library's dynamic approach to building community that enriches lives includes programming that brings people, information and ideas together to respect and embrace the well-being of the people we serve. We celebrate Seattle’s many cultures by forming strong partnerships with community organizations.