Boystown

Boystown is a name for LGBTQ+ neighborhoods, often called gay villages or gayborhoods, defined by a concentration of queer bars, businesses, community organizations, and residents. The best-known example is the Northalsted area of Chicago's Lakeview neighborhood, marked by rainbow pillars and widely described as one of the first officially recognized gay villages in the United States. Chicago retired the informal Boystown name in 2020 in favor of Northalsted, partly to be more inclusive of the whole LGBTQ+ community. Neighborhoods like these have long offered queer people safety, community, and visibility. As acceptance has grown, many have faced gentrification and thinning LGBTQ+ populations, raising questions about how to preserve them.