ABSTRACT
In a final twist, gays, robbed of their god, their life force, and their freedom of speech, became one of the few groups in United States history ever specifically denied the right to association. In the absence of churches, school socialization structures, and those normal cultural patterns most U.S. residents enjoy, bars became gays' only mecca. Consequently, it became illegal in such central states as New York to serve liquor to “known homosexuals.” Eventually civil disobedience dislodged this specific outrage; and gay bars emerged as churches, temples, homes, schools, and political headquarters for lesbians and gay men alike. (There is frequent conjecture that this ghettoization of gays in bars, still prevalent in many parts of the country, encourages alcohol abuse. It should be noted, however, that alcoholism is not a social phenomenon but rather a metabolic disease whose progression is facilitated by alcohol use.)
