Remembering the Up Stairs Lounge fire that killed 32 in New Orleans
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On June 24, 1973, someone lit a fire at the base of the stairs leading to the Up Stairs Lounge, trapping the patrons. The blaze spread and killed 29 people in less than 20 minutes. Three more people died at the hospital. Photo: Bettman via Getty
New Orleans is marking the 51st anniversary this week of one of the country's deadliest attacks on the LGBTQ+ community.
Why it matters: The intentionally set fire at a French Quarter gay bar called the Up Stairs Lounge killed 32 people and injured 15. It remains New Orleans' deadliest fire.
Flashback: Up Stairs Lounge was on the second floor of a building at the corner of Iberville and Chartres streets.
- It opened in 1970 and gained a reputation as a welcoming place for white gay men, in addition to Black people, drag queens, transgender people and straight allies, according to the LGBT+ Archives Project of Louisiana.
- On June 24, 1973, someone lit a fire at the base of the stairs leading to the lounge, trapping the patrons. The blaze spread and killed 29 people in less than 20 minutes. Three more people died at the hospital.
- Nearly a third of the victims were military veterans, according to the National WWII Museum, but they "would be alternately castigated or ignored in death ... due to the illegal status of homosexuality and associated stigma."
Zoom in: Chris Mickal was working for the Red Cross in 1973 when he responded to the "absolutely horrifying" fire.
- He helped move bodies on the street after firefighters brought them out. "There's not a week that goes by that I don't think about it," he told Axios.
- Mickal is now a district chief with the New Orleans Fire Department and hopes to retire in the next year or two.
- He's worked many scenes over the years, he said, but the Up Stairs Lounge fire stands out in his mind because of the death toll and the politicized response from police and leaders.
The big picture: People gathered Monday night to commemorate the grim anniversary, but a glaring item was missing — the memorial plaque that was embedded in the sidewalk at 604 Iberville Street.
- It was stolen in April and hasn't been recovered. The investigation remains open, New Orleans police said Monday.
- "This incident is a reminder that bigotry and prejudice are still very much alive, and there is still much work to do," said Frank Perez, the executive director of the LGBT+ Archives Project of Louisiana, after the theft.
- Perez and the Metropolitan Community Church of New Orleans are hoping to raise $20,000 to replace the plaque and fund future commemorations, he told Axios New Orleans. They've raised about $7,000.
By the numbers: New Orleans has one of the largest concentrations of LGBTQ+ people in the U.S., with 4.7% of the adult population identifying as members of the communities.
- Three large LGTBQ+ celebrations are held annually too: New Orleans Pride, New Orleans Black Pride Weekend and Southern Decadence.
- Until the Pulse Nightclub shooting in Orlando in 2016 that killed 49 people, the fire was the considered the deadliest attack on the LGBTQ+ community in the country's history.
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