New Fire Island 'Weekend of Women' festival celebrates queer women
From left, Henrietta Hudson co-founders Minerva Rivera and Lisa Cannistraci gear up for the Cherry Grove “Weekend of Women” in early October. The owners pose for a portrait at Henrietta Hudson in Manhattan last month. Credit: Olivia Falcigno
Labor Day has come and gone, which means life on Fire Island has started slowing down ahead of the cooler months.
But this weekend, there will be one last hurrah with the inaugural Cherry Grove "Weekend of Women" to celebrate those who identify as women and their allies. The inclusive festival — all are welcome — will feature live music from culturally significant lesbian bands, a drag brunch, a marketplace and an evening ball at the Belvedere Guest House for Men, a resort traditionally reserved for gay men.
The event stands out as a new space among few specifically meant for queer women, and although a women’s weekend has been held in the hamlet at least once before, it is a celebration that centers women in the historically male-dominated Cherry Grove.
The festival is inspired by "Women’s Week" in Provincetown, Massachusetts, according to event producer Sheila Morgan, which is celebrating its 40th Women’s Festival this year from Oct. 11 through Oct. 20.
"I thought, wow, if International Lesbian Day is Oct. 8 and the P-Town Women's Week starts Columbus Day weekend, why don't we do the weekend just before — the first weekend in October — and we'll sort of bookend this [multi-]week Eastern Seaboard celebration of queer women," Morgan said.
The event is coproduced by Henrietta Hudson in New York City, one of 34 lesbian bars across the country that have historically prioritized creating safe spaces for people of marginalized genders, according to the documentary series "The Lesbian Bar Project."
Of those 34 bars, four are in New York City and none are on Long Island.
Lesbian bars, and LGBTQ+ bars in general, have historically been a "way that LGBT people have connected," said Robert Vitelli, CEO of the LGBT Network. "Prior to the propagation of LGBT community centers like ours, there was no other [safe] place to connect."
Safe places and events like the upcoming women’s weekend are still "vital," Vitelli added. "Any time that a safe space can be provided for anyone in this community to gather and build community and become empowered remains critical."
Lisa Dresner, head of the LGBTQ+ Studies Center at Hofstra University, echoed a similar sentiment.
Events like the women’s weekend offer "a nice affirmation that there are supportive places that people who are part of the community can go to get fellowship and friendship and support," she said.
"This has been, in some measure, a very dispiriting time for the community. We see a lot of homophobic and transphobic legislation in many states around the country right now, and I think being able to gather in a community like that gives people strength to continue on," Dresner said.
As of Sept. 5, 530 anti-LGBTQ bills had been introduced across the country and the FBI recorded an increase in hate crimes based on gender identity and sexual orientation in 2023.
Plus, Dresner added, LGBTQ+ events offer a place outside of the online realm to "meet new people who are part of the queer community."
Ann Brown, director of corporate engagement for the Weekend of Women, said she became an organizer because — beyond celebrating inclusivity — she was excited to be involved in something "more women-centric."
"It feels like, oftentimes, even inside of our own LGBTQ+ community ... that [women are] still sort of the subculture in the culture because of our patriarchal society," she said.
"Obviously we can go everywhere, and we're very welcome in gay bars and queer bars and everything, but just having like that sacred lesbian space is so important and has been important throughout history," added Jess Petino, communications director and graphic designer for the event.
Although Morgan hopes the weekend can become an annual tradition, she said "that will hinge on the response." She expects around 500 people to attend the festival.
"I'm really hoping that this inaugural event, the WoW weekend, is going to be the start of both a new and an extension of a community that already exists, literally and figuratively, for queer women," she said.
Labor Day has come and gone, which means life on Fire Island has started slowing down ahead of the cooler months.
But this weekend, there will be one last hurrah with the inaugural Cherry Grove "Weekend of Women" to celebrate those who identify as women and their allies. The inclusive festival — all are welcome — will feature live music from culturally significant lesbian bands, a drag brunch, a marketplace and an evening ball at the Belvedere Guest House for Men, a resort traditionally reserved for gay men.
The event stands out as a new space among few specifically meant for queer women, and although a women’s weekend has been held in the hamlet at least once before, it is a celebration that centers women in the historically male-dominated Cherry Grove.
The festival is inspired by "Women’s Week" in Provincetown, Massachusetts, according to event producer Sheila Morgan, which is celebrating its 40th Women’s Festival this year from Oct. 11 through Oct. 20.
"I thought, wow, if International Lesbian Day is Oct. 8 and the P-Town Women's Week starts Columbus Day weekend, why don't we do the weekend just before — the first weekend in October — and we'll sort of bookend this [multi-]week Eastern Seaboard celebration of queer women," Morgan said.
The event is coproduced by Henrietta Hudson in New York City, one of 34 lesbian bars across the country that have historically prioritized creating safe spaces for people of marginalized genders, according to the documentary series "The Lesbian Bar Project."
Of those 34 bars, four are in New York City and none are on Long Island.
Lesbian bars, and LGBTQ+ bars in general, have historically been a "way that LGBT people have connected," said Robert Vitelli, CEO of the LGBT Network. "Prior to the propagation of LGBT community centers like ours, there was no other [safe] place to connect."
Safe places and events like the upcoming women’s weekend are still "vital," Vitelli added. "Any time that a safe space can be provided for anyone in this community to gather and build community and become empowered remains critical."
Lisa Dresner, head of the LGBTQ+ Studies Center at Hofstra University, echoed a similar sentiment.
Events like the women’s weekend offer "a nice affirmation that there are supportive places that people who are part of the community can go to get fellowship and friendship and support," she said.
"This has been, in some measure, a very dispiriting time for the community. We see a lot of homophobic and transphobic legislation in many states around the country right now, and I think being able to gather in a community like that gives people strength to continue on," Dresner said.
As of Sept. 5, 530 anti-LGBTQ bills had been introduced across the country and the FBI recorded an increase in hate crimes based on gender identity and sexual orientation in 2023.
Plus, Dresner added, LGBTQ+ events offer a place outside of the online realm to "meet new people who are part of the queer community."
Ann Brown, director of corporate engagement for the Weekend of Women, said she became an organizer because — beyond celebrating inclusivity — she was excited to be involved in something "more women-centric."
"It feels like, oftentimes, even inside of our own LGBTQ+ community ... that [women are] still sort of the subculture in the culture because of our patriarchal society," she said.
"Obviously we can go everywhere, and we're very welcome in gay bars and queer bars and everything, but just having like that sacred lesbian space is so important and has been important throughout history," added Jess Petino, communications director and graphic designer for the event.
Although Morgan hopes the weekend can become an annual tradition, she said "that will hinge on the response." She expects around 500 people to attend the festival.
"I'm really hoping that this inaugural event, the WoW weekend, is going to be the start of both a new and an extension of a community that already exists, literally and figuratively, for queer women," she said.
Event organizers have warned that, since the festival is postseason for Cherry Grove, there will be a limited ferry schedule on and off the island. Housing or hotel accommodations are strongly encouraged.
The event will be interspersed with live musical performances from artists like BETTY, the band that provided the theme song for lesbian television drama "The L Word," musical group Antigone Rising and singer-songwriter Ellie Stone.
The closing event Sunday night will raise funds for Rainbow Connection, a multigenerational theater camp that meets in Cherry Grove each summer to produce an original variety show about queer rights and expression.
Brianne Ledda covers the Town of Islip for Newsday. She previously covered Southold and Greenport for The Suffolk Times and is a graduate of Stony Brook University.
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