First of all, it’s always sad when a small business fails, especially in a city like Philadelphia and especially women owned. However, it appears Marsha’s was doomed from the start. First, it purports to be a lesbian bar but it features a man in drag as a “founding mother” on the front page. That said, one of its employees has accused the owner of transphobia and other ideological thought crimes. Of course, it’s impossible for a lesbian to not be transphobic so that tracks. Much like the bar up in Massachusetts that went viral for eating its own ideological tail, Marsha's seems to have imploded in a confluence of ideological purity and lack of self-awareness.
My straight, non-sports loving white self knows no details but I do know the following.
While homophobia does exist in Philadelphia, there are probably few bars that wouldn’t welcome a lesbian, lesbian couple or group of lesbians who wanted to watch sports among the other sports fans.
Most sports bars prioritize male sports, so places like Portland’s The Sports Bra, do have a need to fill for WNBA/women’s sports fans. Of course, we know that The Sports Bra recently threw out a bunch of women who think men should not be able to play in women’s sports, thus excluding a large part of their target market. However, Philadelphia is rife with sports bars with multiple-rooms and dozens of televisions. In my own Mt. Airy neighborhood, our local Irish pub has two rooms and will show the WNBA on some of its televisions even if male sports are on in the main bar area.
Not all lesbians like sports. Not all lesbians want to be around men, especially cross-dressing men. Most bars and restaurants welcome lesbians. So, the potential reach of this bar was probably small to begin with.
Malcolm Johnson (aka Marsha Johnson) was a man born in New Jersey and hung out in New York. Really? Really? You’re going to put him on the front page of your lesbian bar in Philadelphia? Really, that’s just asking for failure.