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Our "haunts"

Clubs and bars were critical to our lives in the early years. We didn't have places like Church Street and an increasingly accepting world like nowadays, of course. Our "dives" were the only place where we could be with other lesbians, the closest thing most of us had to a "home" and family.  But most of these places were noisy, extremely crowded, smoky holes in the wall -- and, more than likely, they were hidden in a basement somewhere in a dingy part of town.  Ah, home sweet home!

In the 40s and 50s, we had the Rideau Club on Gerrard, as well as the Melody Room and The Music Box on Yonge Street - and the infamous Continental (at Bay and Dundas, where women went after hours to get sober) -- or mixed bars such as the St. Charles and the Parkside.
 
During the 60s and 70s -- some lasted into the 80s and beyond -- we had clubs like the ever lovin' Cameo, The Blue Jay, Tango, Kit Kat Club, Crispin's, the Warehouse and mixed bars such as Quest and the Grads.  Deco's lasted into the 80s and had a female stripper "working the pole" for the dykes, and the Penthouse had "drag shows". The two original "Drag Kings" were local dykes who got up with the "Queens" and put on a show. "Only we really sang," claims one of the Drag Kings today.

C.H.A.T. (Community Homophile Association of Toronto) started and flourished during the 60s and 70s and was one of the first groups to be situated in the Church Street area. Thursday night women-only dances became so popular that they even held them on some Saturday nights as well. A number of groups sprang from the CHAT experience (see Fly By Night and LOOT below).
In the late 70s and 80s -- along with feminism -- came places that were quite different from the usual bars and clubs:

• The Fly By Night bar, for example -- in answer to the growing awareness of alcoholism in the dyke community -- sold a wide variety of juices, herbal teas and other non-alcoholic drinks, as well as reasonably priced food.  Servers were forbidden to "push" alcoholic beverages in any way.   "The Fly" was known for its live entertainment as well, and provided the unique opportunity to many dyke singers and musicians for gigs with "friendly" audiences.
  

• The very popular "Charles Street Potlucks" and dances were a wonderfully non-threatening way for more mature women to ease themselves into the community without having to resort to the bars. The potlucks were held in the spacious and rather luxurious lounge at the Centre for Christian Studies on Charles Street. They were in existence for about ten years and began our road to "respectability"!
  

• WAVAW (Women Against Violence Against Women) -- known for its creative, raucous street demonstrations against numerous injustices, the women of WAVAW played a major role in organizing the first "Take Back The Night" march in Toronto
• BROADSIDE (radical feminist/all dyke-produced newspaper collective) -- this newspaper covered all the mainstream and women's community news primarily from a radical feminist perspective -- it existed for over ten years
• IWD (International Women's Day) -- large March 8th festivities and marches began during this time and some of the women from LOOT were on the organizing committee.  But, while the main IWD march was based on socialist-feminist principles, there was a popular wild and fun LESBIAN-FEMINIST-SEPARATIST PARADE & CELEBRATION of IWD each year as well, organized by dykes.
• FEMINIST PARTY OF CANADA -- this was an aborted attempt by Canadian feminists to establish a Federal party -- the mainstream media and others failed to recognize the relevance of the party (are we surprised?) and it died within about two years
• pivotal roles in establishing both the WOMEN'S BOOKSTORE (a unique concept at the time) and WOMEN'S PRESS
• LESBIAN MOTHER'S DEFENCE FUND / WAGES FOR HOUSEWORK (launched by Wages Due Lesbians)
• COMMITTEE AGAINST THE DEPORTATION OF IMMIGRANT WOMEN (CADIW) -- started primarily to stop the deportation of Jamaican mothers who had been brought to Canada as domestics - but then the Federal Government wanted to kick them out Canada in order to open up jobs for others
• TORONTO COMMITTEE FOR THE LIBERATION OF SOUTHERN AFRICA (TCLSAC) - this group mainly researched banks and corporations that were investing in South Africa, then demonstrated outside their branches - as well as exposing the activities of these banks to the media - but, for all their fervor, certainly no one in TCLSAC ever really imagined seeing a free South Africa in our lifetime!
• and MANY more!
  

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Our fun times

Large lesbian dances were held irregularly in the later 70s and 80s at The Masonic Temple (n/w corner of Yonge and Davenport), The 519 Community Centre, and The Party Centre (south of Church and Dundas) -- many with our very own DJ, activist Deb Parent, some with Mama Quilla II. Church basements were also popular venues for smaller dances.

There were many dykes playing in cover bands along the Danforth well before the dyke bands Mama Quilla, Mama Quilla II or No Frills started in the 70's and early 80s.  A few women from LOOT started playing together at LOOT "house parties" and were simply known as "The Band" before collectively forming Mama Quilla II.  All these bands had some fantastic musicians, who many older lesbians remember fondly (listed alphabetically):  Susan G. Cole (vocals/pianist), Lauri Conger (keyboard), B.J. Danylchuck (keyboard), Evelyn Datyl, Linda Jain (drums), Cathy MacKay (vocals), Arlene (Sage) Mantel (vocals/guitar), Donna Marchand (vocals/guitar), Joan McKell, Faith Nolan (vocals), Linda Robitaille (sax), Lorraine Segato (vocals), Sherry Shute (guitar), Jacqui Snedker (bass), Susan Sturman (guitar), Maxine Walsh (congas/percussion), Boo Watson (singer/songwrier).  Nancy Poole was Mama Quilla II's manager, sound person and "therapist" until they broke up in 1982. Subsequently, Lorraine Segato put together the Parachute Club with a couple of musicians from Mama Quilla II and hired a few others.

And there were many fabulous and extremely popular large concerts with lesbian musicians such as Holly Near, Heather Bishop, Alix Dobkin, Chris Williams, Meg Christian, Kay Gardner, Carol Pope, lesbian comedians such as Kate Clinton, iconoclastic lesbian feminist activists such as JoAnne Loulan (a fabulously funny psychotherapist and author of many books on lesbian sex/relationships) and "Ladies Against Women" (a U.S. street theatre group rather like "The Raging Grannies" that poked fun at right wing male and female groups and individuals), and many, many more great women. Most were brought to Toronto by dyke-run WOMYNLY WAY PRODUCTIONS.

Let's not forget the wonderfully hot n'heavy AMAZON MOTORCYCLE CLUB which started in 1978.  Referred to as "DYKES ON BIKES" during Pride Week, they have led the Dyke March and Pride Parade since the beginning and, according to founder Sue Wells, "We intend to keep right on going."  Members are involved in many types of fundraisers highlighting issues such as literacy, HIV/AIDS in Africa (the Stephen Lewis Foundation), sight, etc.  Another motorcycle club - THE FALLEN IDOLS - existed for a few years during the 1980s.

The NOT SO AMAZON SOFTBALL LEAGUE (the Not So's) has weathered the years well, too.  Started in 1984, there was a strong sense of competitiveness, ribald humour and community among the various teams.  It's still going strong - perhaps even more these days.  Younger dykes seem to take more to sports based activities rather than the bars - the latter notorious for their short lives.  For more information: http://www.notsoamazon.com.  Incidentally, this league was preceded by a dyke baseball team, named the SALUKIES, which played in the regular women's league. When they danced with each other at the league's social activities, the straight league members were apparently quite embarrassed, but they seem to have been accepted otherwise.
 
WOODS (Women Out Of Doors) was started in the early 80s, the first strictly enforced non-smoking activity for dykes.  Even alcohol was only accepted in moderation. There were all types of activities, from one-day biking jaunts to longer canoe/hiking/camping trips in Algonquin Park, etc.  

NIGHTWOOD THEATRE, formed in 1979 and still going strong, was basically a women's theatre company (with a goodly number of lesbians) that put on many exciting productions.  Many of their award-winning plays were written individually or cooperatively by its members.  Ann-Marie MacDonald must have been a mere teenager when she acted in "Burning Times"; Nightwood then went on to produce one of her own award-winning plays, Good Night Desdemona, (Good Morning Juliet).

Finally, in the late 70s a group of lesbians and gay men hosted and produced Toronto's first two lesbian/gay community CABLE TV SHOWS ( "Gay News & Views" and "This Show May Be Offensive To Heterosexuals").  A former member of this group remembers a couple speaking to her almost ten years later telling her that they had been too afraid to watch the shows in case someone might know from their cable outlet what they were watching.   "How times have changed from that kind of fear," she commented.

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Our groups & organizations

OWLs - Older Wiser Lesbians (the FIRST group specifically for older lesbians!)
One former member gave us an idea what this 1980s-90s group and its founders were like:

"I can't remember any exact dates. I was on the 'young' side of the group -- maybe the youngest -- but they welcomed me. They met once a month for brunch. Can't remember the name of the restaurant but it was kind of a 'country' style place in the village. There was a fairly large dance floor on the second floor and the restaurant's clientele seemed big on square dancing.

"The founders of OWLs were Carole (or Carol) MacIntosh-Ritchie and her partner Betty MacDonald.  What I remember most was MacIntosh-Ritchie. She was a character and I really admired her for it. She wore a suit (sort of) -- it was pants and a sports jacket -- and a fedora, and always carried a cane with a fancy gold head. The cane was part of her "persona." Betty was just plain butch-dressing. So it was interesting at the time that they were an out butch couple and had been together for many years -- like 30+ or something.
 
"MacIntosh-Ritchie was very much into the drag queen scene. She befriended the boys, took one into her house when he was dying of AIDS, and took part in the ceremony when they name the Empress and Emperor. She was the "male" escort for the queens as they did their turn on the runway in the competition. And I'm quite sure she was named Emperor at least one year. Last time I saw her she was quite aged and sitting on the drag queen association float in the Pride Parade."

GAYS AND LESBIANS AGING (GALA) was also active in the mid-80s, with social activities as well as committees looking into health and housing issues.

THE WOMAN'S COMMON (1988-1994) - the great and unique experiment.               
A club, a restaurant and a place to hold cultural events, "The Common" is thought to have been the only fully women-owned and operated cooperative of its type in the world. (Certainly women from all over the world wanted information about it, hoping to replicate it in other countries.)  An amazing 200 women invested $1,000 each, knowing very well that they could lose all their money, and another 250 women bought $100 memberships -- all this just  to get the idea off the ground! Established with the dream of  "a home of our own" and the hope of providing a calmer alternative to the existing bar scene, "The Common" opened at 580 Parliament Street.  At its height it had 1,600 paid members, but after years of tumult -- and burnout -- it closed its doors. The closing seemed to drain the energy from Toronto's older lesbian community; it wasn't until 1999 that we began to regain our community spirit once again.

WRIB (Women for Recreation, Information and Business)
WRIB was established in 1991 as a non-profit networking organization for lesbians and bisexual women in the Greater Toronto Area -- and it's still going strong!  They currently have 300 members, with many older lesbians taking part in their activities.  Their events include dinners, dances, brunches, special events for singles, hiking, picnics, baseball, curling, hockey, pool, bowling and informative guest speakers. http://www.wrib.ca

DYKE MARCH - started in 1996
The Dyke March was started in 1996 to give all lesbians and lesbian issues visibility during "Gay" Pride Week - and to give us a time and place of our own to CELEBRATE together. What a wonderful idea!  Bravo to the women who got this off the ground! (Older lesbians led the Dyke March in 2005 - we were the honoured guests.) http://www.pridetoronto.com/dyke

"MAD FOR DANCING"
Started in 1996, "for women who love to dance, but never do because it's too loud and it starts too late", these dances for middle aged dykes (M.A.D.) are held three or four times a year. Although quite a number of younger dykes attended these dances, as they were not exclusively for "older" lesbians, 200 to 400 lesbians attended each event and they were our "life line" to each other.  For more information call 416-486-1548

FIFTYPLUS
When FIFTYPLUS dinners started in February 1999, there were no regular, social events or special places for aging lesbians, bisexual and trans women in Toronto.  From only a dozen members in the beginning, it has grown to about 200.  FIFTYPLUS holds bi-monthly dinners at a variety of east end restaurants, with attendance fluctuating between 25 and 50 women. And there's a monthly 50/50 draw to finance a sliding scale for women who might be short of cash.  To find out more about this group, e-mail [email protected].

'FER DA GIRLZ' - A WEEKLY E-LETTER FOR LESBIANS 50+
FER DA GIRLS began in 2001 as part of the activities of FIFTYPLUS, but it's now produced independently.  FDG features community events and informal gatherings, news, book/movie reviews, health alerts, humour and lots more.  $10/year ($5 for those on reduced incomes). For more information or a FREE sample issue, e-mail [email protected] or go to http://ca.geocities.com/ferdagirlz

OLIVE (Older Lesbians In Valued Environments)
OLIVE was a grassroots advocacy group on issues affecting the lives of older lesbians.  Active in 2001-2003, OLIVE partnered with the Sherbourne Health Centre on the first research ever into the housing and health care needs of older lesbians in the GTA.  In fact, it was one of only two such studies in all of Canada, with over 200 "mature" lesbians participating.  Previously lesbians needs had simply been included in LGBT research and while these needs do coincide, of course -- mostly in the areas of discriminatory attitudes, actions, policies and procedures in both housing and health care -- they do differ.  For example, not much research has been done into our health issues, nor concepts of lesbian-positive health care, nor our emotional and mental health -- and even the needs that have been identified are unknown to health care providers, governments and government agencies ...  or in the older lesbian community itself!  That awareness has begun with the dissemination of the OLIVE report to these agencies and departments, and to the older lesbian community through the research process and the discussions that took place. For more information, or a copy of the report, e-mail [email protected]

GUSHING GRANNIES
The Gushing Grannies get together to talk, laugh and share stories and pictures of their grandchildren. Who else but another grandmother could deal with all that gushing?  They meet every other month at a restaurant for dinner, and they plan periodic weekends away to which partners, friends-of-grannies and grannie-wannabes are welcomed. Their group is open to any lesbian, bi or trans woman who wants to celebrate and honour her grandchildren and her own journey.  For more information, e-mail [email protected]

THE 519 OLDER GLBT RESOURCE CENTRE
The Centre is open every Monday afternoon from 1-6 pm.  Discussion groups, speakers and, once a month, classic films are shown. Visible minorities are welcome!  For more information go to http://www.the519.org, or e-mail [email protected]

Other smaller, less formal groups are active now, such as a group for lesbians over 60 years of age, a book club and a writing group. As well, another group of women became a welcome "young" addition to a dwindling (and increasingly aging) membership of a lawn bowling club!  And, of course, there is the growing number of fun lovin' older lesbians who now participate in the Dyke March each year.

Are we great or what???

© Heather-Ann Brown, September 2005  ([email protected])

NOTE:  Additions or corrections are welcome.

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