A trans individual, accompanied by two other trans friends, were allegedly denied entrance to a suburban gay bar, but the nightspot's owner says it was supposedly due to a specific incident that night that required the nightclub to be strict with regards to identification, and trans individuals and those in drag will never be turned away again.
On the night of March 24, 'Roxy Rockefeller' ( the individual's non-legal preferred name for purposes of this article ) and two of her friends were allegedly turned away from Elk Grove Village's Hunters Nightclub. Roxy told Windy City Times that although she and her friends had come to the bar in drag several times before with no problems, that night was different. They were allegedly told that their drivers licenses needed to match their personas, and even when Roxy offered to remove her wig, they were still allegedly denied entrance. According to Rockefeller, the staff cited a Cook County law regarding IDs.
The Cook County Human Rights Ordinance, although it protects against discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identity, does provide an exception to the rule: if an ID is required, the ID much match the persona of the individual.
The bar's owner says that the ordinance and the law contradict each other, and the bar is working towards rectifying the issue.
Rockefeller says that she was supposedly told by the bar to go to the Department of Motor Vehicles to obtain an ID that pictures her in drag. A trip to the DMV the following week proved to be a fruitless effort.
'They were making my weekend stressful, trying to make me jump through hoops just for one bar,' she said. Rockefeller added that she did not understand why, out of all of the LGBT Chicago-area bars, only one would suddenly stop allowing trans individuals and those in drag into the bar.
Rockefeller described being both angry and embarrassed that night. 'I may not know a lot of things, but I do know what is right and what is wrong. We were humiliated.'
Peter Landorf, Hunters' owner, told Windy City Times that on that particular evening, Rockefeller and her friends were turned away because of concerns over the Cook County ordinance due to a specific 'one-time' occurrence in the club that night. 'They are welcome in our club,' Landorf said. 'There were other instances that happened that evening that made it be as severe as it was, but other than that, everyone is welcome in the club.'
Landorf told Windy City Times he is speaking with the American Civil Liberties Union to get the situation worked out, so the bar can protect itself while continuing to serve the entire community.
'The problem maybe did get a little blown out of proportion, but we are doing damage control and everything is back to normal,' he said. 'Everyone is welcome, just like they were before.'
