Building LGBTQ2+ Communities in Restaurants – What’s Old is News

By Sean Graham

Alex Ketchum, author of Ingredients for Revolution: A History of American Feminist Restaurants, Cafes, and Coffeehouses, joins Sean Graham to talk about the book and how these sites build communities. They chat about what constitutes a “feminist’ restaurant, the cultural significance of food, and how the cafes’ business imperatives sometimes conflicted with their ideals. They also discuss the need to protect patrons, the role of racial discrimination, and how these sites are critical in the face of recent legislation.You can follow Alex’s work on Twitter, Instagram, and through The Feminist Restaurant Project.

Historical Headline of the Week

Tim Carman, “Annie’s Paramount Steakhouse, long a haven for D.C.’s gay community, wins a James Beard Classics Award,” Washington Post, January 31, 2019.

Sean Graham is a media historian, an Adjunct Professor at Carleton University, and a contributing editor at Activehistory.ca