An iconic part of downtown Toronto’s Yonge Street, Zanzibar Tavern is hard to miss. The Toronto landmark is set to hit their 62-year anniversary this year, and they started off 2022 with a bang. Although the bright lights and punny catchphrases dominate their location at 359 Yonge, their contribution to ending the COVID-19 pandemic is even more impressive.
On January 3, 2022, Zanzibar kicked off the new year with a booster clinic. Like other pop-up clinics, Zanzibar’s clinic offered walk-in services for both Pfizer and Moderna mRNA vaccines. This was a joint collaboration between Zanzibar, Maggie’s Toronto Sex Work Action Project, and the University Health Network. They offered booster appointments to anyone over the age of 18, as well as first and second doses to those five and up.
January 3 was not the first time Zanzibar collaborated with Maggie’s to offer low-barrier COVID-19 vaccination clinics, nor was Zanzibar Maggie’s first venue collaboration.
Zanzibar and Maggie’s offered two other low-barrier COVID-19 vaccine clinics during the month of June 2021. Maggie’s has also collaborated with other venues, such the Church of Holy Trinity, Steamworks, and Fillmore’s Gentlemen’s Club (twice).
As part of their commitment to make vaccine access as equitable as possible, all clinics were walk-in and did not require ID nor proof of address. However, they also offered appointments for those who preferred this option.
Maggie’s emphasized that these “clinics advocate for an end to the targeted stigma Mayor Tory and Premier Ford use against strip clubs, exotic dancers, and sex workers more broadly through the pandemic. We are partners in public health strategies and stress that continued criminalization of our work, as well as increased stigma and shaming of our communities through the pandemic, only contributes to further violence against sex workers.”
