Precinct DTLA, a popular gay bar in downtown Los Angeles, says it could be forced to close amid a discrimination lawsuit brought by a former employee. A message posted to the bar’s official Instagram account notes that the attorney representing the former employee may have “a clear anti-LGBTQ agenda.”

As the Los Angeles Times reports, former employee Jessica Gonzales sued Precinct in May, claiming she faced discrimination and harassment for being a cisgender, heterosexual woman. Gonzales alleges she had to work the bar’s coat check without pay after management did away with the coat check fee at Precinct’s weekly jockstrap/underwear party to encourage “more patrons to drop their pants.”

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She claims Precinct’s owner told her to “stop complaining” when she reported that fellow employees and patrons were having sex at the bar, and that another employee broke two of her fingers in a struggle over one of the stress balls she said she needed in the “hostile” work environment. Her lawsuit further alleges that she was fired so that the Precinct’s owner and manager could replace her with a gay man.

In its August 1 post, Precinct said the lawsuit also alleges that the bar “discriminates against white employees.” Precinct denies the claims.

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It went on to suggest that “the attorney representing this case, in our opinion, appears to have a clear anti-LGBTQ agenda.”

“There are multiple reports — including from individuals who previously worked with him — that he used anti-LGBTQ slurs in written emails while at his former firm,” Precinct’s post read.

As the LA Times explains, Gonzales is represented by John Barber, who made headlines in 2023 after his former firm, Lewis Brisbois Bisgaard & Smith, released 15 years’ worth of emails in which he and another colleague, Jeff Ranen, regularly used racist, misogynistic, and homophobic language. According to the Times, anti-gay slurs “were deployed as all-purpose insults” in the emails. Shortly after the release of the emails, Barber and Ranen released a joint statement saying they were “ashamed of the words we wrote, and we are deeply sorry.”

On Instagram, Precinct’s owners said that the lawsuit has compounded the effects on their business of the shutdowns, a general decline in nightlife in recent years, and, more recently, ICE raids and citywide curfews.

“We’re doing everything we can to defend ourselves,” they wrote, “but the legal battle is draining us emotionally and financially.”

Initially, Precinct asked that patrons show support for the bar by coming out, buying drinks, and tipping its staff. But in an update, the bar’s owners said they had launched a GoFundMe campaign aimed at raising $70,000. As of August 4, the campaign had received over $50,000 in donations.

On Sunday, the bar also announced an August 6 fundraising event featuring a drag show, raffles, and silent auction.

“The community response has truly humbled us,” Jeremy Lucido, one of the GoFundMe campaign organizers, wrote. “Sounding the alarm wasn’t just about the litigation we’re facing — it was about the deep responsibility we feel to our staff and our patrons.”

Lucido added that the bar’s leadership is “working with city leaders to address the challenges facing all downtown Los Angeles businesses.”

“We know we’re not alone in this fight. Our dream has always been to help create a vibrant queer district downtown — but that may not happen without Precinct,” Lucido wrote. “Truthfully, launching a GoFundMe wasn’t our first choice — we simply hoped people would show up. And you have. Every message, every donation, every visit — it all means more than we can say.”

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