Woman complains to police over gay men wearing ‘mesh thongs and leather harnesses’. Yes, really
A man refresh himself as he wears a leather harness at the “Mama Leather” stand during the Harlem Pride parade in New York on June 29, 2019. (Photo by Kena Betancur / AFP) (Photo credit should read KENA BETANCUR/AFP via Getty Images)
A woman in Washington DC has complained to local authorities over a gay event because her neighbours saw men wearing “provocative outfits” – including a leather harness and a jockstrap.
The party took place in the city on January 18 at the RedRocks Neapolitan Bistro and was marketed as a “leather weekend”. The event caters mostly to Black men.
But one woman was not impressed at gay men gathering in her local area. The woman, who is called Jessica, sent an email complaining about the event to the DC Alcoholic Beverage Regulation Administration (ABRA).
The woman claimed that neighbours had seen gay men walking around in ‘mesh thongs and leather harness’.
In the email – details of which were reported by the Washington Blade – Jessica said people in the neighbourhood had seen “multiple men in very provocative outfits including mesh thongs and leather harnesses walking throughout various residential streets in the neighbourhood during and after the event”.
She continued: “Several of my neighbours also witnessed various attendees of this event engaged in sexual acts inside the venue and outside the venue.”
This last event on Saturday, January 18, held temperatures close to 27 degrees Fahrenheit, and it snowed earlier in the day.
The woman also reportedly complained to police about the event. Brett Parson of DC police told the Blade that there were no allegations of criminal activity in the email so no police action is required.
Jessica also complained directly to the venue. ABRA are now investigating the matter.
Lead organiser Micah Roseboro hit back at Jessica’s complaint, telling the news outlet that the club night provides a place for queer people of colour to gather “safely and freely”.
“We flirt and dance and dress scandalously. We wear harnesses and thongs and jockstraps and lace just to defy and redefine masculinity,” Roseboro added.
The woman has been accused of lying by event organisers.
He also insisted that they ensure that all attendees arrive and leave fully clothed, and suggested that Jessica was lying when she claimed that men were walking around the neighbourhood in thongs and harnesses.
Roseboro pointed out that the temperature was just 27 degrees Fahrenheit (-2 degrees Celsius) in Washington DC last Saturday night, meaning nobody could have been walking around in “provocative garments”.
“This last event on Saturday, January 18, held temperatures close to 27 degrees Fahrenheit, and it snowed earlier in the day,” he said.
Furthermore, he said that neighbours could not have seen men wearing these clothes because all the windows were blacked out. People in the area could only have known what clothes the men were wearing if they were also attending the event.
Roseboro is now looking for a new venue for the queer event because he feels that the area is no longer a “safe space” for the community.
