In Chinatown, a poignant tribute honors the heroes and heartache of the ‘Glades era’

By Dillon Ancheta - Hawaii News Now - Jun. 28, 2024:

(HONOLULU) - There’s a new plaque in Chinatown that serves as a poignant link to the past for Hawaii’s LGBTQ+ community.

The plaque was unveiled Friday by legendary Glade performer Brandy Lee, who was joined by Honolulu Mayor Rick Blangiardi. It celebrates the legacy of The Glade nightclub, which was a hot spot for nightlife for nearly 20 years starting in the early 60s.

While the “Glades era” was a glamorous and fun time, it also carried a dark history.

The nightclub was a safe space for transgender and drag performers and thrived at a time when those people were almost guaranteed to experience violence and discrimination in everyday life.

“We had to wear this badge. It was kind of the law,” former Glade performer Richard Fischer said about the infamous “I AM A BOY GLADE’ buttons.

“If you didn’t, you’d get arrested. So it was rough times. And we’re still struggling today.”

Lynda Brown also performed at the club and remembered the buttons, which were required under the ‘Intent to Deceive’ clause in Hawaii’s disorderly conduct law.

“We wore them because because we didn’t wanna be thrown into the river. We didn’t want to get beat up by the cops. They was doing it to us all the time,” Brown said.

All of this painful history encapsulated by the plaque at 152 N. Hotel Street is now a part of the Lei Pua ʻAla Queer History Trail of Hawaii, a collection of sites significant to the LGBTQ+ community.

Click here to learn more about it.

“It means a lot to me because during our era, you know, we had to fight to just be out, just to be seen. We had to fight each other ... just to survive,” Brown said.

Dean Hamer is Lei Pua ‘Ala Queer History of Hawai’i Project’s co-director.

It was “a site of persecution. People had to wear an ‘I AM A BOY’ button, but also a (place of) real refuge. It was a place of safety at a time of a great deal of danger, and we’re celebrating their memories. Some of them are still here today,” Hamer said.

For many who experienced the Glades era, Friday’s plaque unveiling ceremony was a moving tribute to the stories of the past. “As you can see on the news, there’s still harassment going on,” Fischer said. “So our struggle is not over. But again, we came along way.”

Hamer added, “By remembering our history and remembering our stories, we hope that that will be something really wonderful for the next generation.”