I ran across this article in the New York Blade Online, discussing the leather subculture. I found an interesting part where it speaks about why there are no Het Leather Bars.
Why has the leather scene long been considered a sub-culture of the gay community? In every large city gay men in their leather regalia can be seen heading towards the local Eagle or Ramrod. Because there are no equivalent heterosexual leather bars (although there have been underground S/M clubs), people have come to the erroneous conclusion that the leather scene is strictly a gay phenomenon. Nothing could be further from the truth. For instance, The Eulenspiegel Society (TES) is a New York-based S/M group that caters largely to straights.
“Since there are other groups in NYC dedicated to gay males and lesbians, TES tends to get bisexuals and heterosexuals as members,” said Susan Wright of TES. (Wright is also a spokesperson for the National Coalition for Sexual Freedom.) “It’s true that there are more gay leather bars,” she said. “There aren’t any het BDSM [bondage and S/M] bars because you can’t play in the same space as liquor is sold. BDSM clubs that allow playing are non-alcoholic, and these clubs cater to gays as well as hets and bi’s on different nights under different promoters. Gay men don’t play in the leather bars—they go there to meet other gay men. Very similar are the many swing clubs around the U.S. that meet at bars where the members socialize, and then if they want to play they leave to go to another location.”
This makes perfect sense to me. Let me know what you think, in the comments.
MV
The House of Void 