BBB CINCY’s Open Boycott Letter

An Introduction to Our Chapter’s Open Letter

By BBB Cincinnati

In January 2019, the Black Bear Brotherhood of Cincinnati (BBB Cincy) made a decision to boycott Tillies Bar in Northside—a multi-cultural and inclusive Bear night in Cincinnati on Wednesdays. The BBB Cincy’s Bar Night is our chapter’s weekly gathering as we build membership and programming and has been the cornerstone of our coming together as brothers since our inception. Since many of our fellow members, especially those in other BBB Brotherhood chapters, don’t know about the experience we had, this letter is worth sharing as a defining moment in our chapter’s history. Below is a lightly edited version of the original open letter BBB Cincy leadership publicly released to inform our growing membership of the boycott and of our new weekly venue space, Arts’ On The Ave (Arts’ OTA), which has proven a loving and affirming space in the months since the Tillie’s experience happened.

Black Bear Brotherhood of Cincinnati,

We are writing to announce that we have decided to no longer meet at Tillie’s on Wednesday for Bear Night. As many of you know this was a night started by our own Tim’m West and Brian Collins, a white ally, in an effort to create an inclusive environment that affirmed Black men of size, their friends and admirers, as well as non-Black allies.

As leaders in the Brotherhood, we were deeply upset with a racist incident on January 9, 2019, wherein a white, off-duty manager at Tillie’s interrupted Childish Gambino’s “This is America” 3/4 of the way through, reportedly due to the violence in the video, and reportedly at the request of a Black patron. We know that Black people can be anti-black. We experience it sometimes at Tillie’s from Black men who dare not return a friendly greeting, let alone look us in the eye. Furthermore, the off-duty manager did not request to get by our group as politely as described, but rather put hands on one of our members, without explanation of his intent to cut the song or why. That it was “This is America” replaced by something so crudely opposite [a mainstream pop cut], further deepened the perception that the incident was racially motivated.

Though several appreciated [the owner]Nigel’s effort to establish his support for the community, the response seemed to negate the realities of historical racism in Cincinnati’s LGBTQ community. Many suggested we boycott, a move affirmed by one of our favorite bartenders, Henri Michael, for which he was suspended for two weeks and quit. The idea of one of our allies standing against racism when we’d consider tolerating it and supporting with our dollars a lack of accountability for bigotry, is unacceptable.

The decision to end our support of Tillie’s in Northside was not an easy one. Our multiple attempts to reconcile this situation in a way that was respectful and supportive of our group were met with disregard, and blatant disrespect of the Brotherhood and its allies. Recognizing Tillies’ blatant disregard for the value added to their establishment by way of our presence and our money, we hereby refuse to continue our support.

We will be moving our Black Bear Brotherhood night from Wednesday to Thursday each week. In addition, we have found a new home. Arts’ On The Ave, formerly Queen Anne’s, has welcomed us. The establishment is Black Owned and positions itself as friendly and affirming to the LGBTQ+ community. As noted in Cincinnati author, Doug Cooper Spencer, in his novel This Place of Men, Black queer folk have always felt at home there.

So, join us Thursday, January 24th for the kickoff: Paint, sip great drinks, and enjoy friendly service by many who reflect our community. We are excited to create new memories, build a stronger community, and stand proud as black men in a space that loves us back.

Sincerely,
The Black Bear Brotherhood of Cincinnati