But he was.Ībout thirty minutes later, someone, presumably Nunez, set the stairwell leading to the bar on fire. As he was being escorted out of the bar, he angrily threatened to come back and “burn you all out.” No one thought he was serious. On Sunday, June 24, 1973, a troubled young man, Roger Dale Nunez, was ejected from the bar for being belligerently drunk and harassing customers. The New Orleans MCC had once held worship services in the bars entertainment area before securing a place of its own. On Sundays, the UpStairs Lounge hosted its weekly beer bust which was attended by many members of the newly formed Metropolitan Community Church, a gay-friendly denomination. Despite the French Quarter’s “anything goes” reputation, gay bars were routinely raided in the early 1970s and being out of the closet was unthinkable to many in the LGBTQ community. It was a friendly, neighborhood bar that afforded gay men a safe space to gather and enjoy each other’s company. The UpStairs Lounge was a gay bar that occupied the second floor of a building at the corner of Chartres and Iberville Streets in the French Quarter. Paper Monument Project #025: Despite the French Quarter’s “anything goes” reputation, gay bars were routinely raided in the early 1970s and being out of the closet was unthinkable to many in the LGBTQ community.
