Noise row escalates as Sliema drag bar reports homophobic harassment

The co-owner of Sliema’s only drag bar has raised concerns over homophobic comments directed at the establishment following online criticism about noise. 

On Wednesday evening, drag performer Chucky, who co-owns the drag bar Sirena with Sphinx, shared a reel showing a man outside the bar shouting: “I hope you all die!”

Chucky also claimed that “multiple clients have heard him shout homophobic slurs from the balcony down at us” and shared a screenshot of a comment referring to a potential physical altercation.

Speaking to Times of Malta, Chucky said there have been instances where patrons and staff were filmed without their consent and subjected to homophobic slurs in both Maltese and English.

Following the incidents, the bar filed a police report, saying staff felt threatened. Police confirmed that a report had been filed.

If it wasn't for the support of Sphinx, the bar would have closed down within days due to the onslaught of blatant and subtle homophobia against it, according to Chucky. 

"It has nothing to do with it being a drag bar"

The controversy comes after a number of Facebook posts criticised the bar over music and noise spilling out into the street late at night.

Chucky said that not everyone who criticised the bar was homophobic. 

Among those who spoke out about the noise was resident Houda Ghozzi, who said she was “disgusted” by the video showing the man shouting at the bar. 

“That video is very bad. You should never speak to anyone like that!” she said.

She was one of the first to post publicly about the noise issue. Ghozzi said she had initially posted on Facebook criticising the noise from the bar. The post was deleted and she later published another.

In her second post, she wrote: “You can’t silence a whole neighbourhood using the card of hate: when the Sirena - Drag Showbar & Café uses weaponisation to impose illegal noise on a whole neighbourhood.”

Houda Ghozzi's original post which was later deleted. Photo: Facebook

She said music was often too loud and sometimes exceeded the legal time limit. She also complained that people gathered outside the bar and became rowdy.

“Children wake up. Elderly people cannot rest. People who work long days lie awake at midnight, 1am, 2am. This is not one or two sensitive neighbours complaining. This is an entire neighborhood.”

By Thursday evening, that post was also deleted. 

Ghozzi insisted her concerns were unrelated to the nature of the venue.

“It has nothing to do with it being a drag bar, I would have done the same thing to a Muslim place if it was breaking the rules. I actually thought it was a great idea.”

She said she had “nothing but respect” for the queer community and that her issue concerned noise levels. As a nearby resident, she said she had heard disturbances multiple times and that several neighbours had complained to her.

She added that she had spoken to the bar on several occasions to ask for quieter operations and claimed there had not been enough enforcement action by the authorities despite numerous phone calls.

However, she also noted that "about 60 per cent of the time there was no issue with the bar."

Ghozzi said she felt she had been unfairly labelled as homophobic following her posts, with some comments targeting her background as a French Tunisian.

One comment read: “This isn’t Tunisia...stop hiding homophobia behind 'noise” complaints.” and another read "Houda, respectfully, we are not in Libya or Tunisia or where you're from, so just cause something doesn't fit into your agenda, you can not invent lies..." 

"Noise has nothing to do with us" 

In response to the complaints by Ghozzi and others, as well as repeated police visits, Chucky and the staff of Sirena began logging the bar’s closing times.

Chucky shared videos and screenshots with Times of Malta showing that the bar was closed between 11 pm and around midnight on various occasions.

Chucky said shows typically finish between 10.30 pm and 10.45 pm, after which the music is lowered at 11 pm, and staff begin cleaning. Some patrons remain to finish their drinks, but the premises are closed by midnight.

“Wherever all this noise is coming from has nothing to do with us, “ said Chucky. 

Chucky added that the bar had installed soundproofing, a measure which Ghozzi acknowledged had improved the situation.

Under Maltese law, the playing of music by whatever means inside commercial premises that are not licensed for amplified music shall stop by 11.00 p.m and between 1.00 p.m and 4.00 p.m. Furthermore, the amplified music may only be played after 11.00 p.m. and between 1.00 p.m. and 4.00 p.m. inside the commercial premises that are covered by a licence for the playing of amplified music. 

Last summer, a queer bar and café a road away from Sirena had a rainbow flag “ripped” from its entrance.