The Dallas Way celebrates the city's unique lesbian bar history

DALLAS - EntSun -- The Dallas Way presents Raise a Glass: Stories from Dallas's Lesbian Bars on Thursday, October 22, 2026, at 6:30 p.m. at Sue Ellen's as part of LGBTQ+ History Month.

The event brings together Kathy Jack, Barbara O'Brien, and Harriet Shaw, three women whose experiences are directly connected to some of Dallas's most iconic lesbian gathering places, including Sue Ellen's, Desert Moon, Rumors, and Moon Dreams. The conversation explores the friendships, activism, community, and social networks that developed within and around these spaces. Kristin Holman, owner of the former Eden Lounge, moderates the program.

"For generations, Dallas lesbian bars created far more than nightlife," said Steve Atkinson, Chair of The Dallas Way Board. "They provided places where women could find one another, build community, organize, and create relationships that helped shape Dallas LGBTQ+ history. Sharing these stories during LGBTQ+ History Month makes the program especially meaningful."

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Originally scheduled for September 10^th, Raise a Glass now takes place in October, during the internationally recognized LGBTQ+ History Month.

Doors open at 5:40 p.m. for photo scanning. Attendees are encouraged to bring photographs documenting Dallas LGBTQ+ nightlife or other aspects of local LGBTQ+ history for possible preservation in The Dallas Way archives. Scanning is available before the program and again afterward. Original photographs are returned to their owners.

This activity is an ongoing community initiative, "The Way We Were: Dallas LGBTQ+ Nightlife, 1945–Today," which digitizes personal photographs, flyers, and memorabilia to preserve the history of Dallas's queer nightlife, which is organized by the Badge of Pride in collaboration with The Dallas Way, the Dallas Social Queer Organization, and the Coalition for Aging LGBT.

No advance tickets or registration required.

About The Dallas Way

The Dallas Way (https://www.TheDallasWay.org) gathers, preserves, and shares the history of Dallas's LGBTQ+ community through oral histories, archival materials, photographs, and public programs.