Long Live Queer Nightlife

LGBTQ+ nighttime venues have undergone a startling decline globally over the past 20 years. More than half of London’s venues closed between 2006 and 2016, and the in the U.S. an average of 15 gay bars closed every year from 2008 to 2021. “Save your tears, because queer nightlife is alive and well,” writes the New York Times in its review of Dr Amin Ghaziani’s new book, Long Live Queer Nightlife: How the Closing of Gay Bars Sparked a Revolution. “In fact, it’s even better than ever, having evolved into a more progressive, sophisticated form.” How is this possible? How is queer nightlife surviving, if not thriving, in the middle of an epidemic of bar closures?