Center Blog

Guest Post by Richard Allen

“If you need my bra, my shirt, my weave, my lashes, I’m going to give it to you.  That’s just the kind of person I am.” – Lady Jasmine

On the most recent World AIDS Day, filmmakers Kate Kunath and Sasha Wortzel screened the rough cut of their documentary film Starlite at the Center.  The Starlite Lounge was a gay bar in Crown Heights, Brooklyn that closed in 2010, due to the location being sold and the subsequent rent hike –one which, it is suggested by the film, was as much a choice based in moralism as in commerce.  The Starlite lounge was the oldest black-owned gay bar in New York, and the oldest black-owned business on Nostrand Ave., and the film makes a compelling case for the importance and centrality of it to the history of gay life in New York, black life in New York, as well as simply the history of New York itself.

The documentary, which looks fantastic—the colors are crisp and clean, and avoid many of the problems of shooting in digital—seeks to tell the history of the Starlite, from its beginnings in 1959 on through to the community efforts, ultimately unsuccessful, to keep it open.  In between, it tells the story of the owners, bartenders, customers, and performers of the Starlite, and the uniquely welcoming community that sprang up around it.  As one of the filmmakers said, this story lies “at the intersection of race, orientation, gentrification and AIDS awareness,” but it is truthfully about a place that rose above cultural differences.  Ittruly became a safe space that was welcoming to all, and sought to be more than just a place that served alcohol or had a dance floor, but instead a hot spot for community activism, AIDS activism, gang deterrence, and racial and sexual reconciliation.  Along the way, the film makes manifest the impact of AIDS on everyone who is even marginally connected to the LGBT community.

Following the screening, there was a question-and-answer session with the filmmakers; the owner, Linda King; a former bartender, Dennis Parrott; the former resident drag queen, Lady Jasmine; as well as several customers.  They all continually discussed the impact of the Starlite lounge and the hole created in the community, as well as their hopes and attempts to reopen in another location.  Their warmth and openness towards the audience, and their easygoing affection for each other were the best advertisement for what New York is now missing, and one hopes that they are ultimately successful in re-establishing this crucial safe space.

Today is World AIDS Day, a time for the global community to remember those we’ve lost, contemplate ways to better help people living with HIV, and promote solutions to prevent the spread of this disease. This year marks 30 years since the first AIDS case was reported in the U.S.

Since our founding in 1983, the Center has been fully committed to providing HIV and AIDS services to our community, which has been profoundly affected by the AIDS epidemic. Tens of thousands of New Yorkers with HIV or AIDS have benefited from our help. Each year The Center provides more than 1,800 counseling and group sessions to people living with and affected by HIV and AIDS. More than 1,000 LGBT youth and young adults attend HIV prevention activities and leadership training.  Thousands more attend educational forums and conferences.

But our work to end the epidemic is far from over. According to the New York City Department of Health and Mental Hygiene, “New York City remains the epicenter of HIV/AIDS in the U.S. More than 107,000 New Yorkers are living with HIV, but thousands more don’t know they’re infected. New York City’s AIDS case rate is almost 3 times the U.S. average, and HIV is the 3rd leading cause of death for New York City residents aged 35 to 54.”

African Americans, gay and bisexual men, transgender people and youth 13-29 continue to experience high and increasing rates of HIV infection in New York City. New York is not alone, since the first AIDS cases were reported, the global AIDS epidemic has become one of the greatest threats to human health and development.

The Center’s for Disease Control released new figures this year showing that ‘despite years of great progress in treating AIDS, the number of new HIV infections has remained stubbornly around 50,000 a year in the United States for a decade.

Today as we reflect on 30 years of HIV/AIDS, we remain optimistic in the knowledge that with continued activism, support, education, prevention programs and community building we can ultimately end this epidemic.

As part of World AIDS Day formerViva Glam Ambassador and M·A·C AIDS Fund spokesperson, Cyndi Lauper will join M.A.C Cosmetics at the Center. Lauper and M·A·C will assemble gift bags, with items donated from the New York Liberty, Contesta Rock Hair and MTV Networks,  for the LGBT Center youth and speak to press on the importance of this day. Lauper is well known for her exceptional voice and endless dedication to raising awareness for HIV/AIDS prevention and care. She recently attended the Center’s Women’s Event 14, introducing her friend and our honoree, out comedienne and activist Wanda Sykes.

The Center will also commemorate World AIDS Day by presenting documentarians Kate Kunath and Sasha Wortzel in conversation with Dennis Parrott and Linda King, owners of the legendary Starlite Lounge.

In 1959, a decade prior to Manhattan’s Stonewall riots, the Starlite Lounge opened in Crown Heights, Brooklyn, as a non-discriminatory establishment for gay people of color. A half-century later, the neighborhood and the gay community were shocked when the oldest, Black-owned, LGBT establishment was given notice to vacate and was ultimately forced to close in 2010.

In honor of World AIDS Day, The Center will focus on how the Starlite became a refuge and organizing point in response to the AIDS epidemic. The filmmakers will share key excerpts of their documentary-in-progress, Starlite, and talk with former resident performer Lady Jasmine and long-time patrons about what the Starlite meant to the community, especially in the early days of the epidemic.

Also featured at the event will be the organizers of the AIDS Memorial Park and learning center currently being proposed for the triangle site opposite the former St. Vincent’s Hospital. The proposed location sits in the middle of the neighborhood, the site of significant AIDS epidemic organizing: from the first AIDS ward at St. Vincent’s Hospital to the founding of ACT UP and other advocacy organizations at the Center.

We invite our community to be a part of our World AIDS Day events, help us pay tribute to all those we have lost and work strategically with us throughout the next decade in our continued efforts to end AIDS.