Hugh Ryan

Freelance writer

Trafficked Women’s Second Chance

First published on The Daily Beast on October 14, 2011. Read the original here.

For 10 years, Maria (not her real name) was beaten, raped, and forced into prostitution by her husband, a New York City resident. He often refused to allow her food, locked her in a room without a toilet for days at a [...]

Where Novices and Artists Indulge the Quilter Within

First published in The New York Times on September 29, 2011. Read the original here.
THE stores are already stuffed with polar fleece, Gore-Tex and Thinsulate. But as temperatures dip, one unassuming shop in Midtown Manhattan has everything needed to weather an old-fashioned winter in the oldest of ways — though you should start sewing now. [...]

A Gay Oasis, With Beer and Barbecue

First published in The New York Times on August 11, 2011. Read the original here.
WALK past the low-ceilinged bar, the jukebox and the pool table. Keep going, beyond the stage where “Queeraoke” erupts every Tuesday, and right out the back door. Feel the sunshine on your face and inhale the relatively fresh air (this is [...]

Is It Summer? Time to Party at the Museum

First published on The New York Times on July7, 2011. Read the original here.
THREE young girls zipped across the crowded dance floor, dresses fluttering, as a new D.J. took the stage. Their parents watched from beneath a small grove of plum and oak trees, drinking beers and discussing the exhibition of Ryan Trecartin videos. Nearby, [...]

Fall Getaways

First published in Westchester Magazine’s August 2011 issue. Read the original here. I contributed three pieces to this round up: (Rox)bury Your Cares Away, Life’s a Beach, and Tons of Fun in Bennington.
Excerpt
Even from a distance, it’s easy to see that The Roxbury is not your average Catskill Mountain motel. The vivid green detailing on the [...]