The Rise of the Gay Mafia, a Powerful Cabal That Never Existed - Atlas Obscura

Contents:

• HOW THE MOB HELPED ESTABLISH NYC’S GAY BAR SCENE
• HOW THE MAFIA HELPED ESTABLISH NEW YORK CY’S GAY BAR SCENE
• WHY THE MAFIA CONTROLLED STONEWALL AND THE OTHER GAY BARS 1960S NEW YORK
• WHEN THE MAFIA CONTROLLED GAY BARS
• THE RISE OF THE GAY MAFIA, A POWERFUL CABAL THAT NEVER EXISTED
• HOW NYC’S GAY BARS THRIVED BEE OF THE MOB
• GAY LIBERATN AND THE MAFIA
• MOB H MAN OUT OF THE CLOSET: ROBERT MORMANDO IS GAY AND REGRETS LIFE OF CRIME, HIS LAWYER SAYS
• SOME OF THE FIRST GAY BARS NEW YORK CY WERE OPENED BY THE MAFIA
• THE GAY RIGHTS MOVEMENT AND THE MOB
• GROUNDBREAKG BOOK DETAILS WHEN MAFIA CONTROLLED GAY BARS

HOW THE MOB HELPED ESTABLISH NYC’S GAY BAR SCENE

But between New York’s LGBT muny the 1960s beg forced to live on the outskirts of society and the Mafia’s disregard for the law, the two ma a profable, if uneasy, the gay muny blossomed New York Cy the 1960s, members had few plac to gather publicly. Unr the guise of New York State’s liquor laws that barred “disorrly” premis, the State Liquor Authory and the New York Police Department regularly raid bars that tered to gay the law saw viance, however, the Mafia saw a goln bs opportuny. It was the only place where gay people uld openly dance close together, and for relatively ltle money, drag queens (who received a bter receptn at other bars), naways, homels LGBT youths and others uld be off the streets as long as the bar was open.

“Fat Tony, ” for one, paid New York’s 6th Precct approximately $1, 200 a week, exchange for the police agreeg to turn a bld eye to the “cent nduct” occurrg behd closed Photo<em>An NYPD officer grabs someone by their hair as another officer clubs a young man durg a nontatn Greenwich Village after a Gay Power march New York, 1970. David Carter explas his book Stonewall: The Rts That Sparked the Gay Revolutn, that durg a typil raid, bar owners would change the lights om blue to whe, warng ctomers to stop dancg and drkg.

HOW THE MAFIA HELPED ESTABLISH NEW YORK CY’S GAY BAR SCENE

Sometim the ps even went to the extreme measure of sendg female officers to the bathroom to verify people’s get around laws that prohibed servg alhol to LGBT patrons, many gay bars—cludg the Stonewall—operated ostensibly as “bottle bars, ” private clubs where members would brg their own alhol.

WHY THE MAFIA CONTROLLED STONEWALL AND THE OTHER GAY BARS 1960S NEW YORK

Apparently, too many high-powered dividuals—cludg Mafia members, police officers and big Hollywood nam—were implited as Stonewall Inn is a bar loted New York Cy’s Greenwich Village that served as a haven the 1960s for the cy’s gay, lbian and transgenr muny. Most gay bars and clubs New York at the time were operated by the Mafia, who paid rptible police officers to look the other way and blackmailed wealthy gay patrons by threateng to “out” them.

WHEN THE MAFIA CONTROLLED GAY BARS

As -founr of the Gay Liberatn Front, Rivera was known for participatg the Stonewall Rts and tablishg the polil anizatn STAR (Street Transvte Actn Revolutnari). After the Stonewall Rts, a msage was pated on the outsi of the board-up bar readg, "We homosexuals plead wh out people to please help mata peaceful and quiet nduct on the streets of the village.

THE RISE OF THE GAY MAFIA, A POWERFUL CABAL THAT NEVER EXISTED

" This sign was wrten by the Mattache Society–an early anizatn dited to fightg for gay reportg the events, The New York Daily News rorted to homophobic slurs s tailed verage, nng the headle: “Homo Nt Raid, Queen Be Are Stgg Mad.

”Over the next several nights, gay activists ntued to gather near the Stonewall, takg advantage of the moment to spread rmatn and build the muny that would fuel the growth of the gay rights movement.

HOW NYC’S GAY BARS THRIVED BEE OF THE MOB

Johnson is seen at a Gay Liberatn Front monstratn at Cy Hall New York, a large crowd memorat the 2nd anniversary of the Stonewall rts Greenwich Village of New York Cy 1971.

GAY LIBERATN AND THE MAFIA

1 / 14: RxSome scholars have argued the famo Stonewall rts that sparked the natnwi LGBT movement were as much a ristance agast the mob’s exploatn of the gay muny as they were a stggle agast police harassment and discrimatory laws. ” Two of the ma gay-rights anizatns that me out of the rts, the Gay Activists Alliance and Gay Liberatn Front, actively champned gettg anized crime out of gay Mafia’s stranglehold on New York Cy’s nightlife bs took a huge h wh a seri of high-profile prosecutns the 1980s. Gog to a bar was dangero though, sce at the time, was illegal to serve gay dividuals alhol, have any homosexual public displays of affectn, and for two men or two women to dance together.

MOB H MAN OUT OF THE CLOSET: ROBERT MORMANDO IS GAY AND REGRETS LIFE OF CRIME, HIS LAWYER SAYS

The Mafia th was slowly troduced to a whole new dience who wanted to go to bars or clubs that tered to this margalized followed were years of fancial exploatn while the New York Police Department pletely ignored the LGBTQ+ muny’s ncerns, safety and the 1960s, the Mafia was well tablished this bs and 1966, a member of the Genove fay, Tony Lria, also known as “Fat Tony, ” purchased the Stonewall Inn then transformed om a bar and rtrant that only tered to straight clientele, to a gay nightclub. Dpe s ls-than-ial ndns, Stonewall remaed extremely popular as was the one of the only plac where gay people uld openly dance together, drag queens uld perform, and homels LGBTQ+ youths and others uld safely orr to operate s gay bars, the Mafia would bribe the NYPD. “Fat Tony, ” for stance, paid New York’s 6th Precct an timated $1, 200 a week exchange for the police agreeg to disregard the activi gog on at Stonewall amongst other gay bars.

SOME OF THE FIRST GAY BARS NEW YORK CY WERE OPENED BY THE MAFIA

In his book, Stonewall: The Rts That Sparked the Gay Revolutn, David Carter explas that durg a typil raid, bar owners would warn ctomers to stop dancg and drkg by changg the lights om blue to whe. Many scholars have argued that the Stonewall Rts June of 1969 were as much a ristance agast the Mafia’s exploatn of the gay muny as they were a stggle agast discrimatory laws and nstant police harassment. Not only did a handwrten msage on a board-up wdow of the Stonewall Inn state “Gay Prohibn Corpt$ Cop$ Feed$ Mafia, ” but also the two ma gay rights anizatns that me out of the rts – the Gay Activists Alliance and the Gay Liberatn Front – actively champned gettg anized crime out of gay Activists Alliance, NYC, 1969.

THE GAY RIGHTS MOVEMENT AND THE MOB

Although the LGBTQ+ muny was ntuoly exploed, the Mafia, some ways, provid them wh a much need haven at the time when the rt of the untry was still very much unwelg, homophobic, and discrimatory. Tal of New York Cy gay nightlife, before the 1980s HIV epimic and the wispread gentrifitn that transformed the cy, sound legendary to those of who weren’t around to wns .

The club eventually hosted numero leather groups at the time, cludg the Fist F—ers of Ameri (FFA), the Total Ass Involvement League (TAIL), the Interchange (a biker club), and the Gay Men’s S&M Associatn (GMSMA). He also said closeted actor Rock Hudson, Queen ontman Freddie Mercury, gay philosopher Michel Fouult, and Liza Melli’s father Vcente Mnelli were among the gay lumari who ma si the legendary club. He spected that a self-policg gay group wh the cy ernment who were ashamed of the gay leather scene helped anize s shutdown, though the Mafia’s shady tax algs wh the bar certaly didn’t help, he add.

You might thk the Italian mob and gay clubs don’t exactly go hand hand, but as far back as the 1930s the seemgly opposnal groups ma a profable, if uneasy, match. As New York’s gay scene began to take shape the 60s,  was still illegal to serve gay patrons alhol, to display homosexualy public or for two gay people to dance together.

GROUNDBREAKG BOOK DETAILS WHEN MAFIA CONTROLLED GAY BARS

“Sure, many mobsters had a homophobic bent and often exprsed their ntempt for gay patrons, but generally there was a benign tolerance for the LGBT+ muny based on fancial terts, and they separated their personal liv om bs affairs.