Digital Dérive: the Story of Le Madame, a Gay Bar that Was Not There

Digital Dérive: the Story of Le Madame, a Gay Bar that Was Not There

In the spring of 2006 the Warsaw police shut down a beloved gay bar named Le Madame, but rather than accepting this fate, it's patrons organized a sit in which lasted several days. Several activists and journalists have suggested this point in history to be the 'Polish Stonewall', a fitting parallel as this instance too also happened in a bar. A seminal point in American history for the LGBT rights movement, the Stonewall Riot began after a police raid was conducted in the New York City bar. Angered by the continued harassment from the New York City Police, the patrons began to fight back eventually barricading the NYPD into the bar. This embarrassing event for the NYPD ended when the the National Guard had to be called in to 'rescue' the NYPD from inside The Stonewall Inn. Though the story of Le Madame does not end as trimphly, Poland has seen a shift in both the social and political acceptance of LGBT persons.

Scott Valentine

Scott Valentine

Scott Valentine