Host an event in our unique venues or make a splash in our rooftop pool. Inspired by our Warehouse District environs, our hotel is ideal for creatives, showcasing an on-site art gallery, an indoor sculpture gallery and a rooftop deck overlooking the New Orleans cityscape. Benefit from our central location in the Arts Warehouse District, near the Garden District, Magazine Street, the French Quarter and several streetcar stops. Situated in a historic warehouse, our downtown hotel offers a different way to experience all that New Orleans has to offer. Neither did Governor Edwards or Archbishop Hannan-he didn't even acknowledge the devastation.Welcome to Renaissance New Orleans Arts Warehouse District Hotel Explore New Orleans' iconic French QuarterĮmbrace the colorful energy of the Big Easy from Renaissance New Orleans Arts Warehouse District Hotel. But to say that the New Orleans Police Department's investigation was lacking is probably an understatement.Įven though it still remains the deadliest fire in New Orleans history, the mayor at the time did not acknowledge the fire, the deaths. He committed suicide a year after the fire and so they were never able to file any charges. They identified a primary suspect and ultimately concluded that this suspect was the probable arsonist. Fire marshal investigators pursued it for quite a while after the police stopped. They pretty much dropped it after a few months. The New Orleans Police Department did do not a very thorough job of the investigation. So after the fire, what did the investigation find? So it was extremely devastating to the MCC as a whole, as well as the gay community in New Orleans. And after church, they often went to the Upstairs, and one-third of the congregation was killed in the fire, including the pastor and the associate pastor. The Metropolitan Community Church was a gay-affirming Christian church and they had just formed a chapter in New Orleans. The mayor would have had a national day of mourning.Ĭan you tell me about the church that features into the story? I know that had that happened at a straight bar, with affluent people, you know there would have been an arrest. It was difficult for people to grieve publicly because, in 1973, you could lose your job, you could lose your house, you could be outed, if you said, "I knew somebody that was killed in a gay bar." Well, why? Are you gay?Īnd you think that was a factor in the muted reaction? They refused to have funerals just because of the place where these people died. The reactions by the church were horrifying: Most churches closed their doors for funerals. Those three people's bodies-plus one other-were never claimed, and they were buried in the New Orleans public cemetery. Thirty-two people were killed in that fire. On June 24, 1973, someone deliberately set fire to a gay bar in the French Quarter in New Orleans, Louisiana. So that's how I started the film and nearly three years later we're premiering it tonight on the 42nd anniversary of the fire.įor those who don't know, what happened that night? TIME Magazine covered the fire and more people came forward that knew people. I committed and I started production of the film, and then the 30th anniversary happened in 2013 and it sort of grew off that. It's as poignant as the Stonewall Inn raid, but it's not part of our LGBT narrative. He began to tell me about the Upstairs fire and I was shocked because I thought I knew my gay history, and I knew nothing about this. Robert Camina: One of my executive producers is from Louisiana. VICE called up Camina to talk about the film and to try and understand why such a horrific crime remains an obscure chapter in gay history. On VICE News: The Satanic Temple Is Suing Missouri Over Its Abortion Law