Monday, December 7, 2009

Preserving GLBT Historic Sites II: The Closing of Lambda Rising

I was sad to hear about the closing of Lambda Rising (LR), and so soon after the demise of the Washington Blade. I think that the owner Deacon Maccubbin is right to feel that he can say "mission accomplished." LR was the first gay bookstore I visited as I was coming out. I also bought my first E. Lynn Harris novel, The Invisible Life, there, and I always went back to buy books (my first book about bears and bear culture), magazines or birthday cards (some of the best I've ever read).

But LR was more than a bookstore. It was in many ways a community center, and it was definitely a safe space. The Rainbow History Project has an excellent historical account of LR's coming to be. Yet with the rise of big box bookstores recognizing that the GLBT community read, and the world of online shopping providing virtually anything, niche stores like LR have been hit quite hard. Towleroad recently posted on the closing of a gay bookstore in Indianapolis, Out Word Bound. And I found an interesting posting about the Common Language Bookstore in Ann Arbor, MI. That bookstore, in an effort to survive did a "Book-a-Palooza" fundraising effort over the weekend (I hope that went well).

There is already talk of trying to get an historic landmark designation for one of the spaces tied to LR, and I think that it would be a wonderful way to honor the historic impact that both Deacon Maccubbin and LR had on the GLBT community of Washington, DC and the nation.

It's important to remember that hundreds of thousands of us sought out gay bookstores to help us on our journies to ourselves. Though some may feel that there is no longer a need to go to a gay bookstore anymore, those stores and the people responsible for them still deserve respect and honor for what they have contributed the GLBT community.

And of course, I will be heading down to LR to pick up some Christmas gifts.

1 comment:

Anonymous said...

In Columbus, Ohio, "An Open Book" relocated after many years, and then shut down last year. The original location was huge, and very much a hub for the community.

Paper media outlets are dwindling, gay and otherwise. Everyone is feeling the loss.

This change seems to be creating a strange gap between having GLBT gathering places and enjoying total equality secured through legislation. Perhaps we will make headway strictly on the web.

The last mile is a big fight, and a long leap.

GLBT history, like all history, is being written everyday. Hopefully hisotric preservationists will prevail, and much of what has been going on will be included as part of US history, because inclusion is another layer of normalcy and acceptance.

I'm just sayin'...