Overview

It’s closing time for an alarming number of gay bars in cities around the globe—but it’s definitely not the last dance

In this exhilarating journey into underground parties, pulsating with life and limitless possibility, acclaimed author Amin Ghaziani unveils the unexpected revolution revitalizing urban nightlife.

Far from the gay bar with its largely white, gay male clientele, here is a dazzling scene of secret parties—club nights—wherein culture creatives, many of whom are queer, trans, and racial minorities, reclaim the night in the name of those too long left out. Episodic, nomadic, and radically inclusive, club nights are refashioning queer nightlife in boundlessly imaginative and powerfully defiant ways.

Drawing on Ghaziani’s immersive encounters at underground parties in London and more than one hundred riveting interviews with everyone from bar owners to party producers, revelers to rabble-rousers, Long Live Queer Nightlife showcases a spectacular, if seldom-seen, vision of a queer world shimmering with self-empowerment, inventiveness, and joy.

“Beneath the surface of statistics bemoaning the closure of gay bars, Amin Ghaziani discovers the underground queer scene of London club nights. From pop up clubs to warehouse parties, these episodic events are ephemeral, but as Ghaziani finds, the search for queer joy is durable. This book is a celebration of radical inclusivity and the remaking of community, and a rediscovery of the joy of a night out.” —Ashley Mears, author of Very Important People: Status and Beauty in the Global Party Circuit

“With fluency and care, Amin Ghaziani brings us the voices and spaces of queer nightlife in the city. This is a book that listens closely, sees clearly, and dances freely. Against a sociology of loss, Ghaziani offers a counsel of joy.” —Fran Tonkiss, London School of Economics and Political Science

“The gay bar is dead; long live queer nightlife! This delightful and illuminating book takes us out on the town—London town. It shows us that, despite a dominant narrative of the death of gay nightclubs, queer nightlife is thriving while becoming more inclusive and joyful than ever. A must-read for anyone interested in urban life, culture, and community!” —Abigail C. Saguy, author of Come Out, Come Out, Whoever You Are

“Call your friends and get on the night bus! In Long Live Queer Nightlife , Amin Ghaziani takes us to London’s most exciting club nights—in places you least expect—to reveal how queer nightlife thrives even when capitalism crushes the gay bar. This is rigorous, thumping cultural analysis.” —madison moore, author of Fabulous: The Rise of the Beautiful Eccentric

“Are you worried about queer spaces closing? Me too. But guess what: they’ll never shut down all the queer pop-up nights. If you live to dress up and go out, but you also appreciate beautiful, thorough research, you’re going to love this book. Grab your leather choker and DM for the address—we’re going underground.” —Krista Burton, author of Moby Dyke: An Obsessive Quest to Track Down the Last Remaining Lesbian Bars in America --This text refers to the hardcover edition.

Amin Ghaziani is professor of sociology and Canada Research Chair in Urban Sexualities at the University of British Columbia. He is the award-winning author of The Dividends of Dissent , Sex Cultures , and There Goes the Gayborhood? (Princeton). His work has been featured widely in international media outlets, including the New Yorker , the Financial Times , the Los Angeles Times , the Guardian , USA Today , and British Vogue. --This text refers to the hardcover edition.