Dark room (sexuality)
{{Short description|Darkened room where sexual activity can take place}}
{{Other uses|Darkroom (disambiguation)}}
A dark room or darkroom – also known as a backroom, blackroom, or playroom – is a room, typically at a nightclub, sex club, bathhouse, or adult bookstore, where patrons of the business can engage in relatively discreet sexual activity.{{Cite web|url=https://www.pinknews.co.uk/2019/06/02/eastenders-ben-mitchell-gay-bar-dark-room-sex/|title=EastEnders' Ben Mitchell wants new gay bar to have dark room for sex|last=Parsons|first=Vic|date=2 June 2019|access-date=2019-06-23}}{{Cite web|url=https://www.lgbtqnation.com/2018/10/judge-dismisses-charges-gay-sex-sting-private-room-isnt-public-place/|title=Judge dismisses charges in a gay sex sting: A private room isn't a 'public place'|last=Bollinger|first=Alex|date=2018-10-19|website=www.lgbtqnation.com|access-date=2019-06-23}}{{Cite web|url=http://www.advocate.com/sexy-beast/2016/6/07/25-public-places-where-gay-men-cruised|title=24 Public Places Where Gay Men Cruised|date=2016-06-07|website=www.advocate.com|language=en|access-date=2019-06-23}} Dark rooms usually have little or no lighting,{{Cite web|url=https://www.advocate.com/arts-entertainment/2017/11/09/35-dos-and-donts-gay-leather-bar|title=35 DOs and DON'Ts of a Gay Leather Bar|date=2017-11-09|website=www.advocate.com|language=en|access-date=2019-06-23}} possibly incorporating blacklights or dim, colored lighting to establish an atmosphere of twilight and secrecy.
Bars
Dark rooms were common features of North American gay bars and clubs in the 1960s and 1970s, and can still be found in some bars and {{c|LGBTQ sex clubs|sex clubs}}. A backroom in a gay bar is typically a small, very dark or dimly lit room at the back of the club where customers can go to have sex, usually without undressing. Until the 1980s, backrooms were common in gay bars, and the sex that took place in them was typically unprotected and anonymous. The AIDS epidemic led to the closing of many backrooms in gay bars, and other public sex venues.{{Cite web|url=https://jezebel.com/the-slutty-resurgence-of-new-yorks-underground-gay-sex-1800953101|title=The Slutty Resurgence of New York's Underground Gay Sex Parties|last=Juzwiak|first=Rich|website=Jezebel|date=21 September 2017 |language=en-US|access-date=2019-06-23}}{{Cite news|url=https://www.ajc.com/news/local/chief-vice-cops-saw-sex-gay-bar/ROzVVxINabvqacQQh8O2lL/|title = Chief: Vice cops saw sex at gay bar| newspaper=The Atlanta Journal-Constitution | last1=Rankin | first1=Bill }}
References
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