Art and Pep

Art Johnston and José Pepe Peña are civil rights leaders whose life and love is a force behind LGBTQ+ equality in the heart of the country. Their iconic gay bar, Sidetrack, has helped fuel movements and create community for decades in Chicago’s queer enclave. What most people don’t know is that behind the business and their historic activism exists a love unlike any other.

America’s popular telling of queer progress largely comes from the coasts – Stonewall, the Cooper Do-Nuts Riot and Harvey Milk’s legacy. ART AND PEP is a story of equality born in the heartland. The first state to decriminalize homosexuality, Illinois was on the front lines of the AIDS epidemic, anti-discrimination laws and marriage equality. But long before government officials would utter the words “HIV,” it was gay bars that transformed into community centers and became ground zero in the fight. While Art and Pep never set out to be activists, for them inaction was never an option. 

It all began when Art wandered into a dive bar in Chicago in 1972. He had no idea the hot bartender he’d later go home with would change his life forever, but it didn’t take long for him to discover that Pep was more than just a popular barkeep in the gay community. A confidante to customers with nowhere else to turn, Pep was known around town as the ultimate cheerleader, always ready to fill a customer’s pint and lift their spirits. Smitten by the fiery Cuban, Art packed up his life in Buffalo and planted roots in Chicago. 

The rest is LGBTQ+ history. Sidetrack opened in 1982 and with Art and Pep at the helm, it went from a 900-square-foot windowless watering hole to a pillar of Chicago’s gay business district, spanning over eight storefronts and multiple levels. Art and Pep have watched as the politicians who once would have them jailed now court the community for votes. The space has become a source of political and financial support for LGBTQ+ rights. Proceeds from the bar have helped fund what is now the Midwest’s largest LGBTQ+ organization, and created a place where patrons, young and old, can sing show tunes on a Sunday and help elect progressives on a Tuesday. Sidetrack’s success paved the way for many other businesses to thrive, turning the area into the first city-designated gay neighborhood in the country.

From being on the front lines of the AIDS crisis to co-founding Equality Illinois, Art and Pep have been leading the fight all along, helping Illinois become one of most progressive protectors of LGBTQ+ rights in the country. But the work is far from over. The movement ignited by Art, Pep and their fellow trailblazers is being carried on today by a new generation. From continuing the legacy of Sidetrack to fighting for trans rights across the country, people like Senator Mike Simmons, radio host Anna DeShawn, EQIL CEO Brian Johnson and others are making their mark and making the world safer and more accepting for all.

The documentary film ART AND PEP tells the inspiring story of their long struggle for equality and the fight to love freely.