The Dallas LGBTQ+ community thrives as one of the largest in the nation. The greater Dallas metro area has the largest number of LGBTQ+ people in Texas (211,000) and the sixth-largest in the United States.
Though queer people have settled all across the North Texas region, the Oak Lawn/Cedar Springs neighborhood continues to be the entertainment, business, and residential epicenter for LGBTQ+ locals and a top visitor attraction. It’s the home to multiple bars, clubs, retailers, restaurants, and other gathering places, including The Round-Up Saloon (one of the top LGBTQ+ country-western bars in the world) and Sue Ellen’s (Texas’ oldest lesbian bar and one of the few remaining in the nation). Named the “Best Gayborhood” by OUT Magazine in 2014, the district also boasts the headquarters of the North Texas LGBT Chamber of Commerce, an organization whose mission is to foster an inclusive business community.
The cultural opportunities in Dallas are abundant for LGBTQ+ people outside the gayborhood, especially in the arts. We’re home to the largest contiguous arts district in the U.S.; the most-recorded male chorus in the world, The Turtle Creek Chorale; and Uptown Players, a theatrical group that produces Broadway-quality plays that typically highlight the LGBTQ+ experience. Dallas also hosts the annual Black Tie Dinner, one of the largest LGBTQ+ fundraisers in the country. Additionally, Dallas’ Cathedral of Hope is the world’s largest LGBTQ+ church.
With so many perks for LGBTQ+ citizens and visitors, it’s no wonder our community continues to prosper and set an example for cities across the globe.
Words by Steven Lindsey, editor, writer and Dallasite
