The Upstairs Lounge Tragedy (feat. InRangeTV)
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- Опубліковано 2 жов 2024
- In 1973, an arsonist attacked a gay bar in the French Quarter, killing thirty-two people. In the aftermath of the tragedy, the LGBTQ+ community of New Orleans faced ridicule, bigotry, and injustice from the media, law enforcement, and local government, forcing them to agitate openly for their rights and dignity.
The fire at the Upstairs Lounge would prove to be a seminal moment in the history of gay liberation. Join me and @InrangeTv as we explore the history and legacy of this horrific tragedy and the civil rights movement it helped spawn.
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~SOURCES~
Robert W. Fieseler. Tinderbox: The Untold Story of the Upstairs Lounge Fire and the Rise of Gay Liberation (2018). Liveright Publishing
Robert W. Fieseler. “The Upstairs Lounge Fire.” 64Parishes 64parishes.org...
Lynn Jordan, Skylar Fein, Johnny Townsend, and Henry Kubicki. “The Upstairs Lounge Fire Gallery.” LGBT Religious Archives Network exhibits.lgbtr...
There is a documentary about one of the victims of this fire that wasn't identified for over 40 years. And his family didn't even know he had died in the fire. He just left one day and never came back. They thought that he was mad at the family but that turned out not to be the case at all.
Do you know the name of the documentary
That’s sad
If you possibly know the name of a documentary or can provide a link to it I'm sure many of us would be grateful to dive a deeper into this story.
@@prinpelletier7754 Pride and Prejudice story of The Upstairs Lounge Fire.
@@seandawson5899 Pride and Prejudice story of The Upstairs Lounge Fire.
I fucking love Karl. He’s the bravest gun-tuber for being outspoken about everyone’s rights
Thank you very much.
@@InrangeTv Also great taste in music. Thanks for introducing me to Babyland!
he's also not a mega chud
@@InrangeTv will ant shei films collab with Ian from Forgetting Weapons
@@brianmorsn4547 I doubt that as their content doesn't really crossover at all. Ian is more about the history of firearms and the mechanics of how they function where as Atun Shei is more about actual history and debating the politics of certain eras.
Karl and Atun as 68 year old bi man I remember the fear and terror of those days. I was only 19 then, and did not know about this until tonight. I came out to my parents about 2 years later, and my father refused to talk to me for almost ten years. I was lucky, because I worked in the gay community, not so for many of my friends at that time. I am now old, alone (widower twice husband (also best man at my straight wedding) and my wife and I don't care who knows. There are many young LBGTQ people out there who still need understanding and acceptance, Putting away my soap box, great job Karl and Atun thank you.
Thank you for sharing your story.
It's strange for me to come across older men who are queer or accepting of queer people, most of the time old guys sneer or make jokes at my expense when I tell them I'm gay or a feminine boy. I'm 24, I live with my dad who is 67, and even though he's told me several times that I can tell him anything, it's still so difficult to bring myself to come out to him and express my queerness and my femininity, given his generation and worries that he might not understand me. Although, I do know he's more open and understanding than most his age, so it's mostly a matter of overcoming my incredible shyness and embarrassment about not conforming to my gender's norms.
I'm writing this because I read your story and it warmed my heart to find someone of that same age group who has lived the queer lifestyle for most of their adult life. It lifts my spirits and gives me hope that I'll find acceptance for who I am from those I love.
@@Frieza287 Don't be so hard on yourself, it's a hard thing you've done, and you are still used to the norms you grew up with of his generation. It'll take some time, but you' ll get there; I (36) didn't come out to my mum (65) until I was about 21 or so, and it took me at least a decade to fully stop expecting a sudden reversal from her, even with all she'd done to support me over the years. All that trauma we grow up with takes some serious work to get past.
And I mean, with how much nasty shit comes from within the GRSM (Gender Romantic and Sexual Minorities: it's a much more inclusive and less cumbersome acronym) of that age range towards those of us who are younger or otherwise don't fit 'their image' of what we should be.... Again, all shit I had to sort through when I was trying to actually come to terms with an accepting Baby Boomer parent. ♥(sorry for the ramble, insomnia is a bitch, but I couldn't just leave it unsaid)
Ty for your story
@@Frieza287 ya know, it does seem like you value your relationship with your pops/are close to him.
So I do have to say: have you considered the possibility that he already knows/suspects and repeating "you can tell me anything" is a disguised "i know already, take the hint and come out"?
Since I have limited information, I can be really wrong and apologize if so. Hope everything works out fine
Atun shei sometimes surprises me but never disappoints with his choice of content.
very well said. i can never guess what's coming next, but it's always good stuff and I learn about something I perhaps otherwise wouldn't have chosen to dig into.
He's good for the "why is this the first time I'm hearing about this" topics
@@richmanifesto1090 my go to channel for sharing those revelations
Yes, that is a good way to describe it.
@@richmanifesto1090 except he is emotionless and momotone
Atun-Shei pushing that envelope with above and beyond content. Bravo sir, you're truly an asset to the world. Let no one tell you otherwise.
Oh boy, this has been a whirlwind of a past couple of hours. I've lived in Louisiana since the mid-90's, but have had family here since the 80's. My boyfriend sent me this video and immediately from the start, I said to myself, "I recognize that corner!" It's kind of surreal to see a documentary on a place where you've literally stood. As well as being gay myself, I have a sister who's gay and was active in the French Quarter in the 80's.
I was shocked to have never heard about this, and I asked her if she had. I barely got past "fire in a gay bar in the early 70's" before she started rattling off all sorts of details, names, everything. She had known people who had been there that night, and had become friends with them. She even said that I had met some of them when I was a kid: describing a towering 6'8" redheaded transwoman named Miss Fury. Once she'd dug out a picture of Miss Fury, I recognized her immediately. It was surreal to have - just now - realized that I had met someone who had been there that night.
It's shocking to have not have heard of this until today. While I'm not originally from Louisiana, I've been here long enough to know that - while shocking - it's not surprising that I hadn't heard about this until now.
Thankfully, we've come a long way since then, and we've certainly got a long way to go. But thank you so very much for unearthing this piece of not only LBGTQ+ history, but New Orleans history.
Miss Fury is the coolest fucking name ever, holy shit.
Miss Fury sounds amazing.
@@sleepyandroid6904 I want a comic book yesterday.
I am totally straight, but the way you both described the UpStairs I thought: "Damn, this sounds nice. This sounds like a great place that I probably would have enjoyed." Inclusivety is great for everyone, even thou the marginalized need it most. I'll put this on my list of locations to visit once time travel gets invented.
Everyone can have fun around marginalized groups I've learned. As long as you accept them they accept you, because they know exactly how awful it feels to not have a place to call home.
Just make sure not to visit it that night
In my experience, heterosexuals have always been welcomed into gay bars, especially in the south. The main reason gay bars even exist is because the opposite is rarely ever true. At a gay bar, it’s like joining someone’s family cookout.
“Straight friendly” bars have long been my favorite places to hang out. I would have gladly spent time and money at the Upstairs Lounge.
The best bars are where people mix. Queer bars were underground. The people had to keep their identity secret at the workplace, but could be themselves in the bar. (as the boys describe) Talking would commence, and you could really learn a lot, and have a good time. Your comment is great, because you get to the heart of it- marginalized groups are better at accepting you the way you are, and being fine company.
InRange have covered some surprising stuff, always happy to see them improving the image of gun owners and showing that we're not all cop-worshipping bigots.
Thankfully, alot more of us queer, left, etc. gun owners have started to become more visible in recent years. Especially since it may help deter some of the bigots who've been getting so scary lately from trying to act on their hateful beliefs knowing that they may end up trying to bash someone who's strapped.
I rarely comment on UA-cam videos, but I feel the need to briefly tell my story just in case there are LGBT+ folks reading the comments who either haven’t come out yet, or simply can’t do so safely due to their circumstances.
I grew up in rural Maine, with a French Catholic family (québécois roots are common this far north). I knew I was effeminate from a young age, and my school yard peers bullied me mercilessly starting in 4th grade until I eventually dropped out of high school to attend adult education.
I eventually did graduate high school and, through the help of some inspiring educators, attended college in Southern Maine. I had only been to “the City” (Portland) twice before in my life. I’ve met so many amazing queer people here, and it’s truly become my home after six years of living in town.
The space that provided me the freedom to be myself, dress, act, present, and enjoy life in only the unique way I can, was our local gay bar. It was intimidating at first as a young person walking into a warhorse of an establishment, but within time I became a regular who is still greeted with hugs and smiles every time I walk in.
Having an active and accepting social life is frankly life saving for LGBT+ people. If I hadn’t have escaped my rural predicament to find my community, I believe I would’ve taken my own life.
If you’re a young LGBT+ person reading this, or an older one, just know that you are not alone.
Thank you for sharing your story.
Thank you for sharing, I love you, stranger, and I'm glad you found a place here and are still around
The social acceptance of hate and normalisation of violence is truly damaging and sadly so many of your great videos contain these two things in spades
Thank you, friend. Both for sharing your story, and offering some encouraging words to those of us who aren't able to safely be out. I am to some folks, but not to many. Living in rural Oklahoma, it's risky.
Also don't forget that maybe your family isn't as bigoted as you think it is.
My brother thought for years we'd cut him off or at least judge him for being gay, not realizing we already knew and didn't care.
My father told him to just out himself already instead of dancing around the issue like a moron, he'd be a lot more free.
Like come on, which straight guy never talks about girls, never had a relationship and hangs up artsy black and white pictures of shirtless men like how can you think this is low-key.
Meanwhile people like Tucker Carlson and Matt Walsh publicly said the Club Q victims deserved what happened. The more things change... 😢
Except they've never said that. Why are you spreading misinformation?
EVERY COLAB WITH INRANGE IS FANTASTIC. KEEP PUTTING THIS SHIT OUT, THE WORLD NEEDS IT.
From one dedicated fan, thank you so much.
Thank you so much!
@@InrangeTv I love you karl.
People are still making jokes and shrugging off tragedies that happen to LGBT people. I've seen people talking about the victims of that shooting in Colorado like they deserved it somehow.
Wow this was horrifying but it's great to shine a light on historical events that many don't know about.
I am a 67 yo married gay man. I have lived in the closet during my late teens through my 50s. We have made progress in the fight for our civil rights and equally, the fight must continue The Republican party is trying to take us back to the 1960s and 70s. We will NEVER return to those days! The younger generation does not understand what life was like in the not so distant past. History is trying to report itself now in 2023. We will never give up the fight
All you can drink for 1 dollar. Fuck, I'd go gay for that price.
We will be in New Orleans for the 50 year honoring of the fire. My husband’s Uncle, Ferris LeBlanc was killed in this fire, and our family, along with many wonderful people are still fighting to get his body back for a proper burial.
I remember watching that horrendous movie about gays being mentally ill that was distributed to schools back in that time period, the 70’s. Being gay could get you killed. I graduated from high school in ‘77. I had one male classmate that was very feminine and was assumed to be gay. He moved out of my little town the week after graduation and never came back. He never came back to class reunions or for anything that was connected with his hometown. I knew his father and mother and talked regularly with them. He was very low contact with them, because if their conservative religious beliefs. I don’t know where you are Rick B. but I want you to know that I am ashamed I wasn’t a supporter of yours or a good enough man to be your friend when you needed friends.
Atun Shei at his best: when he surprises me
A colboration on New Orleans history dealing with human rights is not new. But this happened in living memory, unlike a failed slave revolt
Homophobia is once again a political talking point for some...
Thank you.
Did you mean Homophobia?
Checkmate Lincolnites is the gateway drug to the VVitchfinder General, which is the gateway drug to New Orleans history
I hate blood, I hate blood!
@@SarumanOrthanc I hate the Antichrist! I hate the antichrist!
@@SarumanOrthanc SARUMAN THE STINKY!
I dont think the editing in any documentary I've ever seen has so perfectly conveyed how sudden and horrific a tragedy was as the sudden shift from images within the bar to the aftermath at 6:44 excellent work and thank you for putting such hard work into a piece about an event with so much impact that in most circles is probably completely unheard of.
The transition at 01:00 was also pretty good.
I think the sound cutting really sinks it in as well, very jarring and conveys a sense of shock that adding "fire sounds" would have completely undercut.
@@snazzygoose1149 The scariest sound is silence - the sound of the grave.
@@AtunSheiFilms sadly, that silence was immediately broken by a Spectrum Internet Ad. Which went very inline with the rest of the video as far as other media was concerned.
@@AtunSheiFilms the sudden silence and horrific image was *painful*. Well done!✌🖖
Thank you both for having an immensely important conversation such as this. As you said, it is essential that we bring light to injustices and tragedies such as this (victims of selective amnesia after all) as a reminder of what those who came before fought for and won, and what's at stake when rights are actively being eroded away.
Keep up the good fight and great work as always!
My own life as an LGBT person has been terrifying enough, fraught with violence, menacing, alienation, career sabotage, and loss of family - and I'm a Millennial. This event you've covered so well happened about a decade before I was born, and life as an LGBT person would have been unimaginably terrifying - so much more than in my own time (which was REALLY recently). The fact that two presenters as esteemed as you and InRange can talk openly about this is pretty remarkable, but I think it's equally remarkable that we, as a society, can still contemplate locking LGBT people back in the closet.
TL;DR - I don't know whether to feel relieved or terrified.
But thank you so much for teaching us about this event - something that I'm honestly angry I didn't know about.
Funny thing- I grew up in gay in Utah, the straightest, most religious, Republican place on the planet, and I experienced nothing but love and support from my family and community. But I guess that story doesn't earn any Guilt Points with young white Liberals who are desperate to build a narrative about how cartoonishly evil everyone else in America is.
I’m 58 n queer, n it bums me out how hard younger folks are on older ppl. I get their reasoning but it hurts that we don’t get the credit we deserve for the risks we took in the 70s n 80s.
I helped start Pride in Gainesville, Fl(home of U of F), in the mid-80s, at that time called the rape capital of the country. We had a real problem with frat boys gang assaulting teenage girls(“little sisters”) at sorority parties.
I can remember 20 of us walking in the 1st Take Back the Night March(anti-rape), where we literally had to dodge full cans of beer chucked at our heads by speeding frat boys in pick ‘em up trucks while the cops stood back n smirked.
Honestly, none of us would be enjoying the rights we’ve managed to hang onto rn, if it wasn’t for ppl who came b4. Hope I didn’t come off like a Karen. Said my piece. Love 🏳️🌈
As someone who's on the cusp of middle age and seen a LOT of this from people your age and older, a big part of why people my age (35) and younger are hard on all y'all is because some of y'all get really nasty about the fact we have it easier. Like, beyond toxic jealousy, a lot of TERFs are lesbians, some are even older trans women.
@@Cemi_Mhikku I'm not very sympathetic toward TERFs, since they are coming from the erroneous idea that biology alone determines gender and gender is purely, rigidly binary. Women get shut out and we're not even just talking about trans women.
But.
It is, unfortunately, an historical phenomenon that women have built up their own spaces in the past, which men have come in and simply co-opted once women made those spaces successful. I think that's how TERFs see trans women. Again, I think that comes from their erroneous believe that trans women aren't "really" women, but it doesn't change the fact that men, usually straight men, have done that.
Thank you for this I was a teen transgirl in b the 70s. It was awful. Coming out lol. I don't know but I'm scared, scared enough to change my name again and go hide Again. I see so much hatred toward trans again. It's unnerving for a 60 yr old woman. They're gonna take thos Nashville shooting and blame it on us.
I never doubted that either of you were allies but, the conformation that you two are in fact sane is comforting.
I was 18 in 1973. We never heard about this. This is the first I've heard of it. I knew about the cruelty of homophobia from my oldest and closet friend. Watching what he went thru taught me a great deal about society. Thank you for this video.
Here's to hoping for a future where attacks like that at the Upstairs Lounge and Club Q don't happen.
Wishing my LGBTQ brothers and sisters a safe and accepting Thanksgiving. Everyone deserves to be able to be themselves in peace
Imagine trying to teach this event today in a classroom. Probably "illegal" in Florida, and here in Virginia I'm sure many parents would be calling the "legal" hotline to rat out teachers who dare to cover "controversial" events.
It’s beyond depressing. I thought we were making so much progress in the 90’s & early 2000’s.
@@goldenageofdinosaurs7192 That's likely why there's so much backlash now; there's no need to fight someone when you've got a boot on their neck.
Republicans have no shame.
@sword-swinging cat unfortunately, while many of us were overcome by joy and by excitement following Obama's election and the Obergefell v. Hodges verdict, a significant part of this country was simultaneously overcome by irrational rage. And though we must continue to fight intolerance, I think it is important to remember that these bigots are in the minority. We will not be be bullied nor will we be silenced by a group of people that is inferior in both intellect an in population. This is our country and we will make/break the rules as WE see fit.
In no way would it be illegal to show in Florida, the only thing about it would be to make sure it was shown to the right age group as it is a tragic event.
I don't have the words to articulate how this made me feel, but community is important. Where I live, in South Dakota, we still lack a true LGBTQ+ community. It's still not ok to come out, out here. Sure there are more accepting places then there was 20 years ago, but it's still a struggle.
And I think a big reason for that is we are not banned together to tell people that the way they treat us isn't right. I try and be as open as I can be about the fact I'm a trans woman. Though all that occurs out here is transphobic comments and parents saying "it's not natural". The community may be legal, but it's not accepted. It's not getting lynched in the streets bad. But still people go missing or are beat.
I do quite enjoy your dives into such topics you don't hear about in history class, and I can't wait for the next. Have a good one.
I love your videos, you are great but this one hit very hard. I never comment but I have tears in my eyes right now from this tragedy. I would love to see more videos about the LGBTQ community in New Orleans.
I was going to show this video to a friend of mine who has a number of LGBTQ friends, but the description of the actual fire has brought me to tears and turned my stomach and I don't want to ruin her day. As someone who is LGBTQ myself, and someone who doesn't really talk about it to the majority of my family, this hurts. This hurts a lot.
Interpret this information however you will:
Iveson B. Noland, the (Episcopal) Bishop of Louisiana at the time, was the man who ridiculed one of the reverends under his leadership for holding a small prayer service for the victims, on the basis of them being gay.
He died in a plane crash in 1975… on the second anniversary of the tragedy.
Karma.
Coming from a bi Episcopalian? God works in mysterious ways. I wonder if he thought about the tragedy at all as his plane was going down. Probably not.
Both of you show a courage I’ve found so disappointingly lacking in both popular “history-tube” and certainly “guntube” circles. I can’t imagine many other channels I follow telling this story. Maybe that’s a fault of me only focusing on a narrow slice of the platform, but I feel like to some extent it’s also a fault of the community to which you both provide a glimmering exception. I respect you two like I respect very few people on this platform.
The moment he said "The tragedy was over," I realized I'd been holding my breath through almost that whole description of events. The way that it only seemed to get more and more intense, the descriptions so much more vivid and horrific, it was only when it had finally drawn to a close that I felt I could breathe again.
As genuinely unpleasant an experience as that was, I think it's a crime that I'm only learning about this tragedy now, and not so much sooner.
Ya'll both are some of the best on UA-cam for shining a floodlight on parts of history that a lot of people in the U.S. would like to forget. Deep respect and appreciation from me guys, keep at it.
When people say "we're not going back", it's stuff like this
My grandparents are from New Orleans, so I’ve been to this beautiful city many times and never heard of this story. Thanks!
You mentioned not needing a brick.
As a trans woman prepared to fight,
"I was made as brick, and my destiny is a wall. I hope to build a new one,but I'm prepared to break an old one"
Hell yeah, sister.
“There stands a trans woman, like a *Stonewall!* “
Hang in there fellow Earthlings! Bigotry has been dying now for centuries. Very slowly albeit, but it is an actual fact proven by history itself. Also, over the past 50 years it has been dying ever faster.
But evolution works on it's own timescale. You and I will not live to see the day when most bigotry is gone (we can never fully be rid of stupidity and ignorance), we will always be in the middle of the evolution of our own species.
And yet anyone who at the very least is not in resistance to the evolution of their own species has something there to be proud of.
In the meantime, the best we can do is keep making things better for our children. Besides, that makes the world better for everyone, including ourselves during our relatively short time here. One thing I know is that when my time comes, I will rest much easier knowing I did help wherever I could.
I wish you all my fellow Earthlings peace and prosperity. ❤🌍🌎🌏
✊️
@@aylbdrmadison1051 it is however rearing it's ugly head. We've lost abortion rights. And it probably won't be the last thing we lose.
Karl's comments on the need for community and mutual aid is 100% correct. It's something more Americans need to understand, you can't live alone, nobody is self-reliant, it's a fantasy. Pulling yourself up by your own bootstraps was literally meant to describe an impossible and absurd task. This is an absolutely tragic story that needs sharing.
The mention of being arrested just for holding hands really got to me. My girlfriend and I are both trans, but she lives in England while I'm working on finishing my degree before moving over there. The first time I went over there to visit her, she was very nervous about holding hands and that kind of thing because she didn't want to attract any sinister attention. It never occured to me that despite being in a place so much more progressive than America (and we were in a city, not a random rural area), and in this day and age, that people still might want to hurt us for who we are. I can't even begin to imagine what it must have been like to be LGBT in the 1970s in the Deep South. Thank you, Atun-Shei and Karl, for telling the story of such a tragic event.
In many places around the world it's still easy to run into hostility and not the places you would think. Good luck finishing your degree and getting together, I hope you have smooth sailing.
@@angelachouinard4581 All the same it can be the opposite too: It was long ago now (back in '09) but I saw a guy get elbowed in the gut and told "You don't say that shit here" before he could even get a word out when he was gonna clearly say something negative to a trans woman I was walking with on her first night out dressed out. I dunno if little Burlington, VT is still that way, but it was then.
My great-uncle is gay and he was very lucky to be accepted by much of our family and he knew folks who died in the fire and he still recounts the horror of it all as well as people's indifference.
I was 17, in Missouri. Didn't hear a word about it at the time. In 1976 a gay friend mentioned it but didn't know the name of the place. I've never heard the details until now. Please tell your great uncle that I sympathize with his loss and how hard it was in those times.✌🖖
This is good shit! Thanks to both of you for doing this. I'm sadly one of those who doesn't have to imagine too much how dangerous it was for those who came before me, because I'm unlucky enough to be stuck in an area where homophobia is still alive and well, and thanks to some fuckups that've stalled my life I'm still stuck here, closeted, and just biding my time until something gives for me to make a change.
Good luck. Hope you get out.
@@jeffslote9671 what was it?
@@jeffslote9671 what were they disgruntled about?
@@AtunSheiFilms thanks, man. Some things are starting to look up, and I'm finally at a place mentally/emotionally where I'm able to really see that it's worth fighting for myself to have a better life. Appreciate you providing solid edutainment that helps me escape in a way that isn't just wasting time when need be.
@@jeffslote9671 what was it then?
It's absolutely horrible that this whole tragedy was swept under the rug. I was a bartender. In a gay bar. In New Orleans. And I am ashamed that I had never heard of this incident. It is easy to forget that so many people made sacrifices and fought for the things we take for granted today.
The hard cut from the pictures of people enjoying themselves in the bar to the aftermath of the fire was incredibly jarring. But in a good way. Amazing video
Just listening to the description of what happened to the patrons as they burned to death made me physically cringe. Makes it clear the "people" who made jokes about the fire didn't see it.
Don't bet on people's innocence
Some people are really really cruel. Cruel enough, and hateful enough, to rejoice at the horrific deaths of countless innocent people because they didn’t like the people who died.
It was bad, but i wouldnt be hypocritical
It’s an odd headspace. To be so far removed from the reality of 40-50 years ago, but still yet hearing the same stories repeating themselves. This video has had me contemplating all afternoon.
I am subscribed to a bunch of disaster UA-camrs and have seen several club fires covered, famous and obscure, in several countries. I'd never heard of this, probably for the same reason there was no real police investigation. Thanks for telling this story.
I worked in theater in school. One night after rehearsals we decided to go out for drinks. We went to the local gay bar because it was a great bar with a huge firepit to sit around on the patio. I went in to get a drink and ran into a man I saw almost every morning getting coffee and breakfast. I said "Hi!" and he froze. He got a look of utter terror on his face and I realized he was afraid he'd be outed. I had to quickly remind him where we were and that if I wasn't OK with it I wouldn't be there. I assured him his secret was safe. I will see that man's look of terror until the day I die. No one should ever have to live with such fear.
One of the reasons it wasn't investigated much beyond the first few months is that the guy who most likely did it (he made at least three credible confessions afterward, among other evidence) killed himself less than a year and a half after the fire. I guess the response of the rest of the gay community to his incessant attempts to take credit was less-than-rapturous and the local law enforcement was aware of him as their prime suspect, but didn't care. So, after he died, the investigation permanently ground to a halt and they ended up closing the case.
@@paulastiles5507 Thanks for the information Paula.
@@angelachouinard4581 You're welcome. There's a really good Advocate retrospective article about it you can find online.
@@paulastiles5507 Thanks will do
You could feel like that with anonymous programs. Not everyone is that close to their family and friends might judge or not get it. No matter how long someone has been sober. ASK FIRST.
Dude, as a 19 yo gay person I can't imagine people making JOKES of my death(honestly it's sickening that these poor people suffered, and the assholes outside didn't care and made jokes of it)
They did that for The Station fire (old 80s hair metal band with ONE original member left!), as well as the stampede and crushing that happened right about then at E2 in Chicago. Mostly black people, far as I know.
They said things like the E2 people must be welfare queens to be out on a Thursday night, when people work on Fri.
They said that the Station patrons were lame.
You should be able to find this easily online.
Both happened in 2003.
They do that to deflect that it might happen to them. This is why lawyers don't want women on a rape trial. They deflect, I wouldn't do that, be out that late, dressed like that...implied: she was "asking for it."
The words about how this isn’t some distant event really touched me. The people who died because of this fire died in 1973; my mother was born in 1973. It’s horrifying. 49 years ago. God.
This reminds me of the Kiss Nightclub fire in Brazil. Since the 242 lives lost were mostly drunk partying university kids, there were people that said that "If they were in church, they'd be Alive". Truly disgusting.
I remember how poorly gay people were treated in the 70s. Even in New York where civil rights for almost everyone were starting to be accepted, there was almost no tolerance for gay people. In fact it was totally acceptable to mis treat gay people. We were actually encouraged to be homafobic in school. I'm ashamed to admit I was as anti gay as anyone else simply because I was taught to be from a young age by church and school.
I did a report on the Stonewall riots for my Sociology class. This video was mind blowing 🤯. Thanks for sharing
Thank you #inrangetv for being historically expansive and socially concious. I am proud I follow you and Ian's work. Also, Atun-Shei ... and such, subscribing for this content.
I feel like there should be a colab series called “Forgotten History” Great job on this Dream Team
This
Hi Karl, I have got to know your work through some random memes and later your collabs with Ian. The last couple of contributions from You made my respect for you grow immensely. I really appreciate the way people like you defy stereotypes or tropes and display real affection and empathy for forgotten/ marginalized people. All without following convenient and easily monetizable fake ideologies or catering to the lowest common denominator.
Thank you very much for taking the time to say so, it is very appreciated.
I remember reading about this years ago and being horrified at both the deaths and the callousness of New Orleans as a whole towards the victims due to their sexuality.
Look at modern politicians almost gloat when unvaccinated people die, its nothing new.
The fire going up the steps more than likely caused something called the trench effect. That's when the flames actually begin to lay down and combustible gases begin to build up over top of them. And once those gases reaches a thousand degrees Fahrenheit the gas will ignite. That person opening up that door gave the fire of breath of oxygen. Sending the ignited gases into the bar as if somebody was standing there with a flamethrower. A similar thing happened in London in 1987 at a London underground train station, the King Cross fire. Which also killed about 32 people. Except for that instance there was no need to open the door. Since a fireball the lasted into the ticket area. From a set of wooden escalators.
As to the end of the video, with the fears of the reversion of rights...it's time to band together. A whole lot of us, not just LGBT, not just women, not just minorities, are at risk of being attacked by those who preach moralism for power.
We have many more allies NOW than we had when we had to resort to the 'brick' in the past. Do not be afraid to ask for help from other minority communities...even communities of faith.
I've actually been talking with fellow queer pagans, occultists, and whatnot about just this sort of thing alot lately. We're at risk from these christofascists for what we believe, as well as who we are, and alot of us are starting to get worried. Though, along with the fear, there's solidarity, and a wish to stand up for and protect one another, come what may.
@@burninsherman1037
There are pagan neonazis too, you know. In fact, neopaganism is now far more popular among nazis and right-wing types and they somehow use it to also justify homophobia (I guess they haven’t read their pagan myths, which has gender bending and gay gods, anymore than Christians read their bible)
@@jeffslote9671 Why do you bother even commenting? What's the point?
@@Goji01Films he's butthurt that he can't be a bigoted shitstain without facing the music anymore...
@@Goji01Films he wants to make it into one of the stupid comment features.
I’ve taken to watching your videos while doing easygoing stuff in video games.
For this one, I had to stop and hold back tears.
Thank you for keeping these people’s stories and their inspirational resilience in the face of tragedy and bigotry alive.
InRange sent me here. Karl is a great presenter of all things, not just firearms. Thank you both for bringing this to our attention.
It can be difficult to appreciate just how much the world has changed with regards recognition of same sex love. Something I use to illustrate this point is the fact that one of the few Nazi-era laws retained after the war was Paragraph 175 concerning homosexuality. People who ended up in concentration camps convicted under these laws received no recognition or reparations. Indeed being found out as a homosexual was grounds for denying reparations for other survivors as well. Some were liberated from the camps only to be sent to prison to finish their sentence. The Nazi era law was enforced right up to 1969 and only formally annulled in 2002. Those persecuted under it only recognised as victims of the Nazi regime in 1985. This is where the gay liberation movement was starting from in the 60s: fighting to be recognised as something more than vermin, something worthy simply of victimhood, and something worth mourning.
It is important to remember to not become complacent and that it’s always possible to backslide, but it is difficult to think that within one human lifetime we went from that to legally recognised gay marriage and gay families. Even as recently as the nineties, the notion of gay marriage in the US was a pipe dream, something maybe a century down the line.
I appreciate the sentiment at the end of this video that we shouldn’t remember the upstairs lounge as it was in its final moments but as the place it served for the community for years, but what sticks with me are the descriptions of horror of the first responders which quickly dissipated when it became clear that the victims were queer. It is quite right to fight injustice for the sake of the victims, but possibly in equal measure it ought to be fought for the sake of the perpetrators. If one’s capacity for horror and disgust when confronted by human misery is impaired by prejudice, this speaks to a brutalised soul in need of healing. If anything the perpetrator is in greater need of being brought back to humanity than the victim.
You'll hear a similar story on the Rhythmn Nightclub fire. Not a legal club, it was all black and started when someone set fire to Spanish miss covered in Flit bug killer.
209 dead. Which makes it close to top of the list of single building fires in US. it might be 3 or 4. Iroquois. Cocoanut Grove...
Rhythm Club is number 7 if you include the two WTC buildings, if not, it's number 6. Iroquois with 602 deaths, Cocoanut Grove 492, Ohio State Penitentiary 320, Consolidated School 294, Conway's Theatre 285. Rhythm had 207.
InRange being based is a pleasant surprise I never knew. Didn’t assume he had bad views innately, just never knew his opinions on things.
Due to shadow banning and proactive demonetization, there's a good chance you didn't see my content unless you looked for it intentionally. Thank you for the kind words, much appreciated!
He really is based, to my unending delight. You’ve to check out his work on stuff like the Red Summer of 1919 or the Wounded Knee Massacre
No justice, no freedom without solidarity.
I really appreciate this video and your outline of the horror of closeted life in addition to the horror of this tragedy.
The closet was a shitty way to live, especially in high school where the young naturally want to frolic and screw around with other youths.
All I could do was silently and miserably pine after my attractive or fun classmates.
Straight people have no clue whatsoever how absolutely awful that way of life was. Seriously, if you didn't live it, you don't know. And it was all thanks to them, the majority, and their irrational fear. I get sick of some who say "We've done enough." No, no you haven't, not by a longshot.
Homophobia is still prevalent. Much like racism, it hides in the shadows now, ready to jump at the opportunity.
Being a gay male in my late 20s with a soon to be husband I couldn't imagine having to hide it for years and years
I don't know how it was in New Orleans, but I knew several out, gay men and women in the '70's in Seattle, even at my public high school. Seattle was probably more tolerant than average, but it wasn't easy for them.
You did a lot of wonderful things here. A lot of great information, a lot of excellent presentation and clear facts and no bones about it with the community reaction.
But nothing hit me like the very end, with the picture of the bar, the sounds of voices, the music playing... And letting us remember the Upstairs Lounge as it was for all but the final horrible hour of its existence: A place where people spurned by the outside world could meet, leave the weight at the door, and feel some peace and community. We know of it for the horror of its tragedy but most of its existence was love and connection. That's how it deserves to be remembered.
The horror and injustice of this event is literally making me feel my blood pressure rise in real time. These people died unimaginably horrible deaths. The way that pastor suffered and how indifferent and vicious the people were about it makes me wish more than the worst on them.
It's shocking how much of our history isn't brought up in schools
I just saw this video. The opening scene has what was the Upstairs Lounge in the background (Chartres and Iberville)...and is currently the site of a timeshare, The Quarter House, where I am an owner and have been since 1997. None of this was ever mentioned when we purchased the property back in the day. They said at the time that a lot of the space was former slave quarters, but that wouldn't be anything unusual in antebellum New Orleans.
Nothing short of outstanding, as always. 💚👍😁👍
Homophobia is horrible, and it is very sad that it still exists. We should support the LGBTQ community for who they are. Thank you for shedding light on this and making great content.
What is also sad is the LGBT community has been taken over by far left anti-American Communists
@@MrCarGuy in the sense that it's actually sexist terrorism?
Something that struck me really hard about this video is how you both treated queer people as... people. It upsets me that that hits so hard right now, because more often than not it feels like we're just a punching bag for politicians to attack. It's such a small thing to do, yet it means so much. Thank you.
Shame that more Louisiana natives have never heard of this tragedy. Thank you so much for making this video!!
This story is thoroughly infuriating and I can't believe I haven't heard about it before. Every once in a while, I think about how recent it was that our society flipped on LGBT rights. I mean, gay marriage wasn't legal until *2015.* In the 90s, open homophobia was so normalized that even Democrats were homophobic (like the so-called "Defense of Marriage Act"). In 2008, Obama ran *against* gay marriage, not to mention how Republicans decried gay relationships with exceptional invective and disgust. And in the 70s, people were so virulently homophobic that 30 deaths were the butt of jokes. Homophobia is now unconscionable for public figures, but it doesn't stop the regression of rights, as Atun-Shei points out, occurring today in places like Florida with "Don't Say Gay." So infuriating. The LGBT community spilt blood to get general acceptance, and now it's backsliding in reactionary pockets. We have to fight it.
Thank you Atun-Shei and InRangeTV for bringing this tragedy to our attention.
Edit: I did not expect the mention of the Florida law to be disputatious. I will not be debating anyone about it because it's besides the point. Be civil if you wish to debate it please!
The Bill in Florida is nothing to do with attacking gay people, it's about stopping people with questionable intention showing sexual content to children. Not pre teens, but kids.
Apart from that I agree with you, had never heard of this and feel like this should be remembered more properly.
'Don't say gay' can just as easily be said to say 'don't say strait' or whatever other sexual relationship. Please look into the wording. Sexualizing kids is not supporting gay rights.
@@behemothfan1990 how’s Russia’s “no gay propaganda for children” law working out in practice?
@@saccaed do you think the law will go after straight teachers who talk or mention their relationship with they husband/wife or will it mostly affect gay/trans teachers talking about their husbands and wives in passing. Hell teachers who are gay have already been instructed not to talk about their husbands/wives while in the class even if asked, no such requirement was given to straight teachers who were married.
Think about how such a law will be enforced and what people will make a fuss about to the degree that law inforcement gets involved. It’s not straight people talking about their relationships and it’s not mentioning in passing about straight people being in a relationship in history. This law was written with the knowledge that it would only be enforced against gay people.
They literally call gay people/trans people groomers for just existing so do you not think that they will think that any mention of them is “grooming” children
@@behemothfan1990 it’s about getting people to stop talking/learning about sexuality in the class even if all that means is the mention of a teacher who mentions in passing that they have a husband and they happen to be a dude. They want silence on the issue, because people not knowing about a group existing makes lying about that group of people easier and they do like calling everyone lgbt or anyone who supports lgbt people groomers. And what do you think the average person thinks should happen to people they think are grooming children?
I want to live in a world where a person is judged by the strength of their character, and not their religion, sexual orientation, race or anything else....Unfortunately it seems that world is fictional...
Empathy doesn't seem to be an established Christian value. Bigotry seems too be a very well established Christian value.
Yes, that is the nature of crime syndicates, they need an external threat so that the entrapped victims doesn't call the hoax or rise up against the ruling parasites.
@@SonsOfLorgar
The business of faith.
A reality for every need and social position. It's free to sign up, but has hidden fees. WARNING :
May cause delusions of superiority. Addiction is possible.
Thank you so much for sharing this important in our LGBTIQ history 💜🌈💪🏾
I am going to be thinking about Regina for a long, long time. Damn.
It bothered me a lot that they said that it wasn't the owner's fault, NOR the CITY'S FAULT. The latter is a LIE.
It obviously looks like a fire trap to me (one known exit to patrons), but the owner wouldn't have known that the stair runner was solid GASOLINE!
That's for the FIRE MARSHALL to TELL YOU!
As a Catholic it’s always difficult to hear the institution failing once again by backing and executing the destruction, oppression, and persecution of the ostracized. Honestly the only thing that usually keeps me around is a belief in the Church’s interpretation of the supernatural, in the Trinity, my belief in the sacraments, and the occasional story of an individual of the Church who actually chooses the right side of history for once, even if it’s not very common. Even with the sacraments, though, it’s hard to appreciate them when members of the clergy get political about their distribution or (historically) simply do so in their shared bigotry (as I believe calling bigotry political is itself egregious as it feels like a cowardly way of considering bigotry legitimate). But my belief in the institution itself has rather faltered these days, even when the pope attempts to reconcile the Church’s history with its victims (especially since he usually doesn’t go far enough).
Even so, my own personal struggles with religion and my need for spirituality will never compare to what religious people like those in this video had to go through.
Why hold on to what's really nothing more than a very successful crime syndicate?
If you think rationally about it, isn't all religion based around brainwashing children and emotionally vulnerable to be terrified of the empty threat of judgement the syndicate uses to subjugate it's victims along with the equally empty promises of salvation from judgement in exchange for blind obeisance, protection money and grooming further victims intentionally masked by calling it
proselytization.
Everything good about you and the people around you comes from within, not from anything supernatural.
The idea of the supernatural is nothing more than the weapon of religion used to kill the innate curiosity and drive for true knowledge through experimentation in it's victims.
Was the mass cover up of child rape not enough for you to leave? Or lying about condoms? Or opposing abortion?
@@theangryholmesian4556 Nope, just like how the mass support of eugenics and forced sterilization of unwanted people in the populace, such as black and native women or the mentally ill, by scientific institutions historically (that history being frighteningly recent mind you) hasn’t faltered my support of peers in joining scientific institutions. Same goes for students going to universities that are the best in the world but also are supported by weapons manufacturing industries and war profiteers, or the current day opposition of some archaeologists to NAGPRA when many in the field are actually trying to reconcile the history of archaeology and looting. Or the medical industry taking advantage of black communities and exploiting them for medical experimentation. Hell, if you cared so much about abuses of institutions, you wouldn’t be using a phone right now, and to fully divest yourself away from abuse you’d have to essentially go live like a monk in a cave, growing your own food and not doing it on stolen land, but hey I guess you can clutch your pearls that some people believe in Catholic theology because they think it rises above the sins of the Church itself, which has a much longer and more violent history than the things you even brought up. I’m going to continue doing my thing though and work for a better, kinder world, because the revolution that burns everything down and replaces all worldly institutions with something perfect isn’t coming anytime soon 🤷♂️
The Metropolitan Community Church came into my hometown after a person who was LGBT was murdered in 1990 and there was a very difficult time trying to hold a funeral for the deceased because almost all the churches refused to hold a funeral service for the deceased. Hearing that New Orleans had a similar problem with a memorial service reminded me of that. Figured I share that.
I can’t believe that people made jokes about this. It was very disturbing to hear the story but it has to be told. I had no idea. Beyond tragic. Thank you for sharing their story.
It was socially acceptable not too long ago in the mainstream. The speed at which culture changed it’s attitude towards LGBTQ people in the past decade-decade in a half is really incredible. It’s easy to forget how bad things were everywhere not long ago.
Sadly I’m old enough to remember the way it was it just shocks me even though I remember it. When I see something like this it’s like “OMG!” but I remember…
2 of my favorite historical youtubers what more could I ask for
Edit: after watching about the story I don't know about anyone else but I visualized and heard everything as it was described and I feel such horror I heard screams of help and sobbing the brain is a powerful thing
I did too. I cried a lot watching this because even if this was an entirely stock standard straight society bar this amount of lost life and such a horrific tragedy is so so horrific
The arson reminds me of the Happyland Social Club, where a patron was ejected and returned to firebomb the entrance. However, this is the first time I ever read anything about this case. While it was bad fire codes in both cases, ignoring this is raw.
Karl you sly dog I’m loving you more and more all the time.
Thank you and hello :)
Progressive guntuber?
Yeah, Karl from inrange is pretty cool
Thanks so much for your continued efforts in bringing events on the local level into conversation with issues of national, and international, importance. The work you do in this video is so important not just because it raises interest, but also because of the visibility it provides for traditionally-underrepresented queer communities. Well done!
My Dad was a murder suspect in New Orleans around 1960.
I saw a newspaper article describing him as, "a Jew from New York City..."
Don't think I'll be visiting anytime soon.
And nah, he didn't do it. Probably.
I HATE how much it hurts to learn about our history
Man, both of your channels’ uploads are always instant watches whenever possible. Y’all always have good insights and have top notch presentation.
There's another channel ?
@@POTATOEH81 InRangeTV
@@POTATOEH81 InRangeTV collab! :)
@@InrangeTv
Who’s he? 😂
From a queer Atun-Shei fan, thanks so much for this fantastic video. It's always good to get a bit more queer history even if this one is a tragedy.
Another comment: I had not heard of this story before, and I have to admit I cried. The way you portrayed the lively attitude of the bar only to cut the scene with an abrupt and silent photo of the aftermath tore the tears right from my body, and the description of the events, though necessary for all -- especially cis het people -- to hear, had me anxiously crying the whole way through. It's difficult to explain to a majority group how it feels to hear about the agony and death of your own people; instead of just thinking, "those poor people" with a degree of separation, you see and feel yourself in the places of the victims, knowing someone out there wishes the same end for you. It isn't just a sad event, it's something you are keenly aware could just as easily have been you and your loved ones. And then you know your community, already fragile and fighting their hardest to survive, has lost good, innocent people to something they never deserved.
This episode is incredibly necessary and I will be sending it to some straight friends so they can better understand exactly what lgbt people have faced and continue to face. But god, it's an extremely hard one for me to listen to, and has me a wreck of emotions.
Don't be a hypocrite. You are casting slurs by using cis het and that means you have no right to complain about other people's comments about your community. If you were less bigoted and insulting to people that are different perhap they wouldn't be bigoted and insulting to your community.
@@annabellelee4535cis het literally means “cisgender, heterosexual” just like saying gay or straight 🤡🤡
@@lebenlarge5282 Spare me your naivete. 🤣🤣🤣
Thank you both for telling the tragic story and difficult epilogue of the Upstairs Lounge Patrons! May their soul’s forever Rest In Peace! They surely must be in heaven for they have served their time in hell.
Outstanding as usual!
Thanks for covering the worst of history. There's a movement to forget and/or sanitise unpleasant history that needs to be viciously fought for the sake of progress; glad that there's creators willing to broach such subjects.
Yeah I just read it excellent book about this disaster entitled. Let the F words Burn.
3:20
Younger viewers in particular may not get a frame of reverence.
Young Gay Person turns on computer
Groomers here Groomers there Groomers everywhere!!!!
Young Gay person
You sure about that?
Don't mind me. Just a casual preemptive view for the future "lesser-viewed" community post bump
Dark but important topic. The pacing of the story telling is quite good and conclusion by the end of the video really helped to digest this story as a whole.
thank you so much for educating even younger lgbt people like myself on this topic and our shared history, Atun-Shei. I've been a fan for a while now, but never expected a dedicated episode from you for people like me. applause to you!!