nightlife

Chi Chiz Owner Ronelle McKenzie: We’ll Have To Close If Police Harassment Keeps Up

Chi Chiz, the West Village gay bar under assault from NYPD, has been owned since it opened in 1998 by Ronelle McKenzie and Everett Ray. Now because of, ahem, “drug dealing” in the bar, the pair are faced with losing the bar that caters to a clientele of color. But Ronelle says the effort to kick Chi Chiz out of the area isn’t just a crack down on gays, but a race-based affront. And that if the bar continues to face legal challenges to remain open, the fiscal battle will sink the bar.

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