"A Denver bar has been cited by the state's Division of Civil Rights for discrimination because it refused to let a gay man dressed in drag enter. The bar is the Denver Wrangler, and despite what its name might suggest, it is not some Country Western joint. It is, in fact, a gay bar. So the state has determined that a gay bar has discriminated against a gay person.

What happened last summer is that a gay man named Vito Marzano, dressed in drag from a fundraiser elsewhere, wanted to enter the Wrangler. He was denied entry. The bar claims it wasn't because he was cross-dressing but because his image didn't match his driver's license. The bar had been previously cited for serving somebody underage and were now being extra cautious. For those not in the know, gay bars have a history of being targets of scrutiny by authorities looking for excuses to raid them and shut them down.

Marzano is not transgender and has made no claims that he is. Nevertheless, the State of Colorado has determined that the Wrangler has likely violated Marzano's right to public accommodation on the basis of his appearance.

The state's report notes that the bar has a dress code forbidding high-heeled shoes, wigs or appearance-altering make-up or strong perfumes. While the report states there's nothing wrong with the dress code itself, it has determined that the bar uses this code as an excuse to exclude overly feminine women or transgender people. The Wrangler is a "bear" bar, whose target demographic is the burlier of the gay men. What's alarming about the ruling is that it seems to act as though catering to a particular demographic is in fact evidence of a likelihood of discriminating against others:

"[T]he Respondent caters to a gay subculture known as "Bears," which are bisexual or gay males which tend to place importance on presenting a hypermasculine image and often shun interaction with men who exhibit effeminacy. This is evident from the pictures and statements made by employees regarding the "Bear" culture of the club and several links on the Respondent's webpage referencing "Bear" clubs … ."

Not only does this story offer me great amusement but it has expanded my vocabulary, sort of. I did not know until now that bars which cater to "hypermasculine" homosexuals are called "bear" bars. I wonder if that is different from what we used to call "leather bars"? Oh, well, no matter. There is something incongruous just with the notion of such places being referred to as "hypermasculine".

Watch your language, TM!