Gay bar tjat used to be on piedmont

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Remembering the Otherside Lounge Bombing 25 Years Later

Or support us with a monthly contribution. UntilOtherside Lounge was a popular lesbian bar and nightclub that sat on Piedmont Road. But on February 21, Otherside Lounge was changed forever. At approximately p. Though not perfect, some members of the LGBTQ community who lived in Atlanta found Otherside to be a place where they could express themselves, especially in comparison to other small towns across Georgia and the South.

Collins had moved to Atlanta from a small town and loved the atmosphere of the city. But the excitement that coursed through the city would soon turn into anxiety. Leading up to the night of the attack, Atlanta had witnessed two other bombings in the city, leaving residents and police alike on high alert.

It was a normal night at the bar. Collins said it was so cold outside that she only stepped out onto the patio for a moment. Collins got a drink and then headed over to the pool tables to play with her partner and other patrons. At approximately pm, the first bomb went off.

Located outside, the vibrations and noise meshed with the loud house music in the lounge, but people quickly knew that something had happened. Undercover cops who were working across the street came running into the bar and instructed everyone to leave the building and gather in the parking lot. Soon afterward, police, medics, and firefighters arrived.

Shortly thereafter, a second bomb went off. While the event caused no deaths, five patrons were wounded and the establishment was never able to recover. InOtherside Lounge shut its doors for good. The attacker, who was apprehended, is intentionally not named in this article at the request of Collins.

The bombing was a quarter of a century ago, yet it seems eerily similar to incidents that have happened in just the past decade. The Pulse Nightclub shooting, which led to more than 50 deaths, was also motivated by anti-gay sentiments and echoes the incident at Otherside.

And it seems that this is a pressing time to remember events like Otherside. Anti-gay and trans hate crimes are still prevalent in the United States; saw an increase of nearly 3, recorded incidents in comparison to the year before.