THE TRUT 1985-2025
The Trut is a legendary, non-commercial queer club in Amsterdam that has played an important role in the city's LGBTQ+ scene for decades. The club is best known for its unique atmosphere, anti-commercial stance, and the fact that it is run exclusively by volunteers.
TETTERODE SQUATTED
On October 17, 1981, the vacant Tetterode complex on the Bilderdijkstraat in Amsterdam was squatted. The former type foundry and printing machine factory, where hundreds of Amsterdammers had worked since 1903, was then scheduled for demolition. The severely neglected complex of three high buildings covers the width of an entire block of houses.
A covenant was concluded with the owner of the building on the basis of which the squatters were allowed to stay, provided they would renovate the interior of the complex. Under the name De Rode Tetter, the building grew into a community of several hundred people in the eighties and nineties.
Not long after the squatters moved in, the squatters' disco Flux was established in the basement where the type warehouse used to be.
DYKES & FAGGOTS BATTLE
The initiators of De Trut were all involved in the dykes and faggots battle in the early eighties and were or felt part of the squatters' scene. And although the Flux was a squatters' disco, many dykes and faggots were also regular visitors. The lack of their own place became increasingly clear to this group of queers in the Flux, they wanted their own safe place to be able to dance together as a dyke and a faggot and to be themselves in an environment where a dyke and faggot culture is decisive. The volunteers of the Flux were positive about the ideas for such a place and made the space and inventory of the Flux available for the new initiative.
On December 8, 1985, the first Trut evening was a fact. After some time, the Flux ceased to exist and only De Trut continued as a non-commercial party. The concept of De Trut was (and still is) different from the usual clubs: low entrance fee, affordable drinks, and an explicit aversion to commercialism and exclusivity. The club became a place where everyone could feel welcome, without discrimination or pressure to consume.
VOLUNTARY & NON-COMMERCIAL
From the beginning, De Trut, located in a basement on Bilderdijkstraat in Amsterdam-West, has been a non-commercial, horizontal association, run entirely by volunteers. The proceeds from the parties do not go to profit, but are used to support LGBTQI+ initiatives and activist projects. This strengthened De Trut's reputation as a place with a heart for the community.
The house rules not only stipulated that no photos or video recordings were allowed (to protect people who are not yet out of the closet), but since the advent of the mobile phone, they also stipulated that these 'mobiles' were not allowed to be used. Calling, sending text messages and using social media with them would be at the expense of the coziness, safety and privacy of the visitors.
Because De Trut is primarily intended for people who call themselves queer (LGBTQI+), the wrong impression has arisen that heterosexuals are not allowed in. They are allowed to enter, provided they do not exhibit any "obstructive heterosexual behavior". The safety and privacy of queer visitors always comes first.
RAW EDGE
De Trut has played a crucial role in the Amsterdam and Dutch LGBTQI+ community. It was and is a safe haven in a time when acceptance was far from self-evident and has become known largely through word of mouth. The strict door policy – where not everyone can just enter – ensured that the atmosphere remained protected and people felt safe. The unique atmosphere, the music and the sense of togetherness ensured that the party on Sunday evening quickly became popular.
De Trut is known for its alternative and underground atmosphere. It is not an average disco, but a place with a raw edge and a strong do-it-yourself mentality, where everyone from the LGBTQI+ community is welcome, regardless of gender, origin or background.
In 2009, some commotion arose when De Trut announced that the business would be converted into a commercial club, the 'CELLAR', by the unpopular catering magnate Sjoerd Kooistra. In retrospect, this turned out to have been a carefully orchestrated stunt to make it clear to a new generation of visitors what exactly De Trut stands for, namely a queer discotheque run by volunteers, where the profits go to charity.
MEETING PLACE
De Trut is more than a “discotheque”; it is a cultural and social institution that has occupied an important place in the queer community in Amsterdam for 40 years. It has retained its unique character over the years and remains an important meeting place for people looking for an alternative and inclusive nightlife.
In the meantime, all buildings (and some Trut volunteers) of the Tetterode residential work building have the status of national monument. And on Dave Carr Smith's website you can find (really) a lot of information and photos of the Tetterode complex.
TRUTCANON
1985 First Trut Sunday evening, December 8, '85
1995 De Trut celebrates its 10th anniversary: MYSTERIA party
1996 Major renovation, including renovation and a different location: the bar, the toilets, the DJ furniture.
2001 Trut Fashion Award
2004 Trut Awards
2005 De Trut celebrates its 20th anniversary, party in CLUB 8
2008 De Trut wins the Golden Gnome for 'the line with the longest waiting time'.
2009 The first Mud Day on Mother's Day, May 10
2009 De Trut (does not) become the CELLAR but remains voluntary and non-commercial
2009 Smoking ban in the catering industry, De Trut gets a 'smoking room' (the Cellar)
2010 De Trut wins the Pink Sweetheart, the gay emancipation award from GroenLinks in Amsterdam.
2011 De Trut celebrates its 25th anniversary with a big party in the COC building on Rozenstraat and with a donation of 25.000 euros to the LGBTQI+ division of Human Rights Watch.
2012 Trut Awards
2012 Trutpas, April 1 stunt with 'customer card'
2012 Highest amount of donations in one year: € 65.000
2015 Major technical, electrical renovation and new DMX LED System in July
2015 De Trut is 30 years old and celebrates this with an anniversary weekend on December 12 and 13 and the documentary 'De Trut is turning 30'
2017 De Trut on Milkshake, July 29
2018 De Trut on location in VRANKRIJK, April 8
2019 Trutpost no. 300, March 31
2019 NO HATE, JUST SKATE at Skatepark Noord, November 16
2019 For the first time paying by card in De Trut, November 17
2020 CORONA measures, 'safe cafe' evenings and Trut TV streams
2020 On December 8, De Trut will be 35 years old. No party due to the corona lockdown, but the online campaign collection for Polish LGBTQI+ organizations starts
2021 Online collection goal achieved. Total, with addition from the Trutfonds: € 15,000 divided over 4 Polish LGBTQI+ organizations
2025 Start of '40 years of De Trut' with, among other things, exhibition, film, Trut Award, theme and end parties and more
2025 On February 14, the 600th Trutpost was published