After an inspiring trip to Cubbyhole, a longtime lesbian hangout in New York City, Viktoria and Whitney knew what they needed back home wasn’t just an event—it was a space. A place where you could actually meet people, talk to them, and build something real. Before their NYC trip was even over, the two were connected with a bar manager in Arkansas who agreed to host their first queer women’s event. They had the space. Now, they needed a name.

“Hairpins” came to them fast. In the 1950s, “dropping hairpins” was a coded way for queer people to find each other. That same phrase later inspired “The Hairpin Drop Heard Around the World”—an alias for the Stonewall Riots, the 1969 protests that changed LGBTQ+ history. Hairpins just felt right. It would be a place where queer women, transgender, and non-binary people could drop their hairpins, let their hair down, and find each other.

The first Hairpins event was in July 2024 at White Water Tavern, and Viktoria and Whitney had no idea if anyone would show up. But the event sold out. And for the first time, they were in a room with over 200 queer women, transgender, and non-binary people in the unlikely heart of Arkansas. From night one, it was clear that Hairpins wasn’t just a fun night out. It was something the community had been waiting for.

Since then, Hairpins has only grown. From packed-out holiday parties at Halloween, Christmas, and Valentine’s to all-ages events like ice cream socials supporting the local trans community, Hairpins continues to grow into whatever the community needs it to be.

Because at the end of the day, that’s what this is about—community. Connection. Carving out space where it didn’t exist before. In a time when people in power are actively working to erase and suppress LGBTQ+ existence, simply being here, together, is an act of resistance. We exist, we celebrate, and we will keep creating spaces where we can find each other—no matter what.