Charlene's [poster]
Files
Title
Charlene's [poster]
Description
Advertisement for Charlene's bar. "New Orleans 1977 - 1999"
Charlene Schneider was an early and vocal advocate for LGBTQ causes in the 1970s. The center of her world was Charlene's, the bar she ran at 940 Elysian Fields in New Orleans from 1977 until early 1999. It became world-famous not only because of Ms. Schneider's effusive personality but also because, in its early years, Charlene's represented something rare: a safe place for lesbians when attitudes toward them were less tolerant. Besides giving women a place where they could socialize and dance, Ms. Schneider had live music by female entertainers, including Melissa Etheridge.
Ms. Schneider opened the bar after a series of odd jobs, including stints at Western Union and The Times-Picayune, where she was a hot-type operator. Along the way she had firsthand experience with discrimination. In the mid-1960s, after being arrested in a raid on a gay bar, Ms. Schneider lost her job as a cryptographer, as well as her security clearance with NASA at Michoud. As a result of her experiences, one of her causes was the anti-discrimination ordinance, which the New Orleans City Council passed in 1991.
After closing her bar, Ms. Schneider and her companion, Linda Tucker, moved to Bay St. Louis, where she operated an establishment called On the Coast.
Poster inscribed:
"To Jody & Marilyn
How can I tell the importance of your friendship.
Love
Charlene
99"
Charlene Schneider was an early and vocal advocate for LGBTQ causes in the 1970s. The center of her world was Charlene's, the bar she ran at 940 Elysian Fields in New Orleans from 1977 until early 1999. It became world-famous not only because of Ms. Schneider's effusive personality but also because, in its early years, Charlene's represented something rare: a safe place for lesbians when attitudes toward them were less tolerant. Besides giving women a place where they could socialize and dance, Ms. Schneider had live music by female entertainers, including Melissa Etheridge.
Ms. Schneider opened the bar after a series of odd jobs, including stints at Western Union and The Times-Picayune, where she was a hot-type operator. Along the way she had firsthand experience with discrimination. In the mid-1960s, after being arrested in a raid on a gay bar, Ms. Schneider lost her job as a cryptographer, as well as her security clearance with NASA at Michoud. As a result of her experiences, one of her causes was the anti-discrimination ordinance, which the New Orleans City Council passed in 1991.
After closing her bar, Ms. Schneider and her companion, Linda Tucker, moved to Bay St. Louis, where she operated an establishment called On the Coast.
Poster inscribed:
"To Jody & Marilyn
How can I tell the importance of your friendship.
Love
Charlene
99"
Source
Collection NA-201, Oversize Folder 1, Marilyn McConnell papers, Newcomb Archives, Newcomb College Institute, Tulane University
Date
1999
Contributor
Tulane University
Rights
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Notes
Learn more:
Zarrelli, Natalie (2016). The Lost Lesbian Bars of New Orleans. Atlas Obscura (September 14).
Zarrelli, Natalie (2016). The Lost Lesbian Bars of New Orleans. Atlas Obscura (September 14).
Collection
Citation
“Charlene's [poster],” Social Welfare History Image Portal, accessed November 21, 2024, https://images.socialwelfare.library.vcu.edu/items/show/344.