A lesbian in the British seaside town of Torquay is furious at being turned away from a men-only gay bar. Rebecca Hill was drinking with her partner at the upstairs bar of the Key West Hotel last weekend, but were blocked from the downstairs bar - known as 'Tom's Cruise Bar' - when they tried to go down. Staff said it was "men only" there. Hill told Torquay's Herald Express newspaper that the bar's policy goes against the spirit of equality in the gay rights movement. "If this was a working's man club turning away women people would say it was wrong," she said. "I think it is disgusting that after all the strides the gay movement has made over the years there are places still discriminating." The bar's management says the hotel is advertised as a gay resort for men, and that the garden is a 'naturist' area. "We don't want lesbians or straight men kicking off because it is in their face," explained co-owner Peter Gordon, adding that as far as he was aware, the men-only bar is lawful and that the women were welcome to drink upstairs.
Credit: GayNZ.com Daily News Staff
First published: Thursday, 23rd July 2009 - 10:13am