A new Australian venue which took its name from lesbian artist Chappell Roan’s song “Pink Pony Club” is set to rebrand after it was criticised for being “tone deaf” in saying its “preferred clientele” would be young gay men.
The venue, originally named Pink Pony, is set to open in December in Sydney’s Oxford Street – the historic thoroughfare which is home to many of the city’s LGBTQ+ spaces.
Roan’s smash-hit song – in which she sings of a “special place” where “Where boys and girls can all be queens every single day” – is inspired by her experience visiting The Abbey in West Hollywood, a famous and popular queer bar.
Roan told Headliner Magazine her first visit to The Abbey was transformative and she “realised I could truly be any way I wanted to be, and no one would bat an eye”, adding: “I just felt overwhelmed with complete love and acceptance, and from then on I started writing songs as the real me.”
In an interview with Gay Sydney News, 80-year-old Palms nightclub owner Kevin Du-Val, who is launching Pink Pony with manager Michael Lewis, said “gay people understand gay people” and explained they are “not doing anything miraculous” with the venue but “we’re doing what I like and what Michael likes, and that’s what the gay people like”.
Lewis told the outlet the name Pink Pony has “very broad appeal across both gays and lesbians, in terms of being a safe space” but clarified – to much subsequent criticism and backlash – it would “unashamedly be targeted at the boys, pretty much 18 to 35″.
“Of course the girls will be welcome, but it would certainly be our desire that it is predominantly gay boys, and when I say predominantly, I’m sort of talking 90 per cent plus,” Lewis, 57, added.
“Obviously we’ve got legal hurdles … in terms of how much we can vet the crowd while still complying with the law … but it is our intention for it to be predominantly gay.”
In a since-deleted comment on Instagram, as reported by Gay Sydney News, the venue also said: “Hopefully all gay venues are accepting of the full spectrum of our community, we are just being honest and open about our reason for being and our target demographic and preferred clientele.”
Members of the community were quick to blast the new venue as “embarrassing” and “tone deaf” given it is named after the work of a lesbian artist who – according to the organisers – would not be the welcomed or “preferred clientele” if she wanted to visit.
“So it’s gay men only, but the name of the club is a song by a female LESBIAN pop star? Oh I fear they missed the mark with this one!!!!”
One user wrote Pink Pony’s strategy was “so disappointing and tone deaf and actually fked,” adding: Appropriating lesbian culture for your own $/benefit for gay men!! What??”
In response, Pink Pony’s Instagram account disappeared and the username changed to @new.name.coming – suggesting the venue will undergo a rebrand in the wake of the backlash.
Lewis confirmed this in a comment provided to Guardian Australia, in which he said: “We acknowledge and respect the very passionate feedback from the wider community and it is clear that it’s best to move forward with a different name for the new venue.”
However, this too was also criticised, with one user writing: “lol imagine renaming ur club instead of being more inclusive.”
Under Australian anti-discrimination law, in the Equal Opportunities Act, discrimination can be permissible if it would substantively improve equality for a historically marginalised group.
In 2007, Melbourne’s Peel Hotel was granted an exemption under state law to refuse entrance to heterosexuals and lesbians, with the venue saying the exemption was needed to prevent “sexually based insults and violence” being aimed at gay patrons.
At the time, the head of Victoria’s Equal Opportunity and Human Rights Commission said of the decision: “These exemptions exist to protect groups in the community who are subject to being treated less favorably, or treated unfairly compared with other groups.
“In this case, what we know is that there are many options for heterosexuals males to enjoy a safe, social environment.”
The exemption was later extended to include anyone who upset the “character” of the gay venue.
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