Owner of Massachusetts lesbian bar speaks out after COVID-era mask policy sparks online fury

A Massachusetts lesbian bar that dropped its long-standing mask mandate almost saw its very first mask-optional night collapse before it began, after staff reportedly grew fearful the event was being 'infiltrated.'

More than a dozen patrons who turned up at Last Ditch Bar and Arts Venue in Greenfield for a goth night were initially turned away and told to come back three hours later, while staff held an emergency meeting, according to the New York Post.

When close to 100 people returned, they were told the night had become a 'private event' due to unspecified 'safety breaches,' and that anyone who couldn't name someone inside would be turned away.

Those who did get in reportedly had to hand their ID to staff, who held onto it until they left.

The chaotic scenes came weeks after Last Ditch first announced it would be easing its long-standing mask mandate, sparking a very online backlash that's been rumbling on ever since.

Why did Last Ditch Bar change its mask policy?

Since opening in 2025, the bar had required all patrons to wear a KN-95 respirator 'or better' at all times, as part of an effort to stay accessible to immunocompromised and COVID-conscious guests.

That changed in an August 31 Instagram post, in which Last Ditch said it would be 'opening Saturday nights as mask optional' to experiment with 'typical club nights with themes/hosts/DJs/full capacity,' as reported by People.

The bar insisted accessibility remained 'a pillar' of its mission, and that it would keep prioritising masked bookings alongside a recurring monthly 'Masked Social.' It didn't stop hundreds of critics flooding the comments, with one social media user accusing the venue of 'being complicit in a mass disabling event.' The Boston Globe picked up the story on September 23, pushing the row well beyond Greenfield's small queer community.

Who is Soe Noire and what happened at the accountability meeting?

Days before that report, Last Ditch held an in-person and Zoom 'accountability session' on September 11, where patron and performer Soe Noire challenged owner Jackie Matellian directly.

According to the Boston Globe, Noire told the room: "you chose to use your time to spill tears and center your feelings. This is incredibly racist and deflecting behavior," adding that as 'a Black person with other marginalized identities,' he no longer felt safe at the venue.

After the meeting went viral, Last Ditch used Instagram to defend Noire from what it called 'anti-Blackness hysteria,' writing that he'd received 'threats, slurs and harassment' and was being 'reported to the police over something he did not do.'

Much of the anger has centred on Matellian, 26, the bar's last remaining owner after her two original co-founders left, including one who reportedly departed for clown school. She's said she's been left holding a $50,000 business loan and has been living in her car for six months, telling attendees at the September meeting: "It was not my passion project. I never really wanted to do this…. I don't think I'm doing a very good job."

Despite the furore, fewer than a dozen people wore masks on the night itself. Patricia Sonaike, 24, a junior at UMass Amherst, told the New York Post she'd expected the change to make the bar 'more inclusive,' while Pete, 43, from nearby Northampton, said going maskless 'just feels off-putting.'