LA wildfires: Lesbian bar announces closure
One of two lesbian bars in the Los Angeles area announced its closing after being impacted by the wildfires.
The Ruby Fruit, located in Silver Lake, posted on social media this week that the financial impact from the fires made operation no longer possible.
"The hospitality industry functions on a day-by-day basis and right now, as they say - the math just isn’t mathing," the post continued.
The post on Instagram was met with dozens of comments from customers saying they were devastated by the decision and looking for ways to contribute however possible to keep the space open.
The Ruby Fruit is one of two lesbian bars in the L.A. area, according to The Lesbian Bar Project, a docuseries that celebrates and follows lesbian queer bars around the country and the world.
The other is Honey’s, located in East Hollywood.
The Lesbian Bar Project teamed up with several other lesbian queer bars in the U.S. to rally behind the employees at Honey’s, which also recently said it had to temporarily close.
Pearl Bar in Houston initiated a fundraising campaign to help the employees at Honey’s in L.A. while it was temporarily closed, also due to the wildfires.
Employees in Houston said they recently experienced first-hand how much of a hit a business can take after a natural disaster.
Meanwhile, owners of The Ruby Fruit in L.A. said they will be using their space as a donation drop-off and distribution site for the time being.
They’re located at 3510 W Sunset Blvd.
They’ve also set up a GoFundMe to help their former employees navigate the transition, and said in a separate post they’d have more info to share soon on any hopeful future plans.
RELATED: California fire aid: List of FEMA, Red Cross and other resources
The Eaton Fire burning just north of Los Angeles and the Palisades Fire that destroyed much of the seaside LA neighborhood of Pacific Palisades broke out Jan. 7.
The Source: Information in this article was taken from a Jan. 11 Instagram post on The Ruby Fruit’s business page, and from The Lesbian Bar Project, which is a fundraising campaign and documentary about the country’s remaining lesbian bars.