50-Year-Old Berlin Gay Club Declares Bankruptcy Amid Boycotts

The “oldest and biggest” gay nightclub in Berlin, Germany has declared bankruptcy amid a cost of living crisis, mass layoffs, and boycotts from pro-Palestine supporters.

SchwuZ, short for SchwulenZentrum or gay centre, opened its doors in Berlin in 1977, going on to play a central role in the founding of the annual Christopher Street Day Parade (also known as Berlin Pride), and queer culture magazine Siegessaeule.

A post to the club’s Instagram last week announced that although the business had filed for insolvency, they aren’t planning on giving up.

“For nearly 50 years, SchwuZ has been more than just a club. It’s a second living room. A place for queer art, community, family, resistance,” management said. “Many of us have found what we were looking for here: a home, our chosen family, and freedom.”

Managing Director Katja Jäger, who was appointed at the beginning of 2025, said the economic situation was “more serious” than she had expected when she took the role.

“The baton was handed to me at the beginning of 2025 with the note that a deficit existed for 2024, but that this had already been addressed with appropriate measures,” she said.

The club ended 2024 in a deficit, and has only been generating between 30,000 and 40,000 euros per month, alongside significantly reduced numbers of attendees.

In May, SchwuZ was forced to lay off 33 employees, making up about a third of its staff, in order to combat the economic losses.

Club remains enforces “apolitical” stance

SchwuZ has also been subject to boycotts from Palestine supporters in the Berlin queer community, who have been vocal about the lack of solidarity from a nightclub that claims to be “a space for queer culture and social and political engagement”.

In an open letter written to SchwuZ in November 2023, community members criticised the club for its handing of two events on October 13 2023 during its “Drag Open Stage Finale”.

One German-Palestinian guest was allegedly asked by a staff member to turn his shirt emblazoned with the words “Anti-Apartheid Club” inside out, on the basis that another guest felt offended by it.

On the same night, a performer displayed a banner reading: “Free Palestine / It is not a conflict, it is settler colonialism against which resistance is justified”, and was reportedly told my managers not to show the banner again. After the show, one of the presenters of the event allegedly made an announcement to patrons that any statement made on stage does not represent the values of SchwuZ.

“Queer liberation and liberation from any form of oppression must go hand in hand,” the open letter read.

“Drag is an inherently political art form, challenging systems of patriarchy, sexism, heteronormativity, and every intersection of systemic oppression. Just as anti-colonial, anti-racist, and anti-imperialist expressions are part of drag, the solidarity with Palestinian liberation has its representation in this art form.”

Supporters called for the club to issue an apology, and condemn what they called “acts of intimidation”, and refused to perform in or visit the club until accountability had been taken by the venue.

SchwuZ did not respond to the open letter, and many commenters on the bankruptcy announcement post pointed out their lack of solidarity.

“In a community rooted in queer values and collective care, that silence — or worse, suppression — feels deeply out of step, especially when so many of us empathize with the struggle for Palestinian liberation,” one Instagram user wrote. “A clearer, braver voice of solidarity — through your programming, DJs, visual language, and online presence — would go a long way.”

The club will remain open until its insolvency hearing in October, and in the meantime are appealing for the community to step up.

“The coming weeks are crucial: for a safer space for thousands of queer people, for hundreds of queer artists, and for over 70 queer employees,” they said on Instagram.

“Now we need you: Come back, dance, celebrate, be loud. Show that SchwuZ is needed and will remain.”