Divas, The Bay Area’s Only Transgender Bar, is Closing

Image from the Divas website.

On Wednesday the Bay Area Reporter broke the news that Divas, the Bay Area’s only Transgender bar, is closing on March 30th. This is especially sad news for the Trans community because it was one of only three bars in the United States that had a specially Transgender clientele, and it was the only one in California.

That’s not to say that there aren’t other bars where Transgender people hang out. Places like The Stud have a large Transgender clientele, and considering that this is the Bay Area in 2019, Transgender people are welcome and supported at establishments all over the region.

That said, what made Divas special is that it was a refuge for Trans people way before our modern era of acceptance (and this era still isn’t accepting enough). For decades Divas was one of the few public places where Trans women felt safe and comfortable being themselves. Sure SF has long been considered an LGBTQ friendly place, but even in other parts of the Queer community, Transgender people weren’t always welcome.

Like pretty much every story you read that concerns the closing an iconic business, the building that Divas is in is being sold. As the Chronicle reports, “A real estate listing with NAI Real Estate reveals the building at 1081 Post St. is on the market for $3.8 million and will be ‘delivered vacant at the close of escrow.'”

This is yet another sad chapter in the greed machine that is killing the soul of San Francisco.

For those of who want one last celebration at Divas, they are throwing their final party on March 30th.