1960: In France, the National Assembly adds homosexuality to a list of fleaux sociaux (“social plagues”) that the government is charged to combat. 2003: George W. Bush, sitting president of the United States, says he supports “codifying marriage in the United States as being between one man and one woman.”

1953: Tim Gunn, fashion guru and guide is born today.  “Make it work!” 1978: The Village People’s first major hit, disco single “Macho Man”, begins a six-week run in the nation’s Top 40. It will eventually go gold. 1986: The Chicago City Council, by a vote of 30 to 18, defeats a proposed gay rights ordinance for the … Read More

1961: Illinois becomes the first U.S. state to repeal its sodomy law. 1988: A major, 175-picture retrospective of Robert Mapplethorpe’s photographs-“Robert Mapplethorpe: The Perfect Moment”-opens at the Whitney Museum of American Art in New York City.

1989: In a response to politcal outcries over a Robert Mapplethrope exhibit, Jesse Helms leads a fight in the U.S. Scnate to curtail National Endowment for the Arts funding for “obscene or indecent art,” including artworks that depict “sadomasochism, homoeroticism, the exploitation of children, or individuals engaged in sex acts.” The measure is overwhelmingly adopted … Read More

1970: The Vatican issues a statement reminding the faithful that the Roman Catholic Church considers homosexuality a moral aberration. 1979: Hundreds of demonstrators show up on Manhattan’s Lower East Side to protest location shooting for William Friedkin’s new film, Cruising, which deals with a series of grisly mutilation murders within the city’s gay leather community. 1985: In Paris, … Read More

1975: World-famous evangelist Billy Graham states that he is in favor of gay men being ordained as ministers, though he hedges on the question of whether women should enjoy the same right.

1980: In the United Kingdom, the House of Commons extends the Sexual Offenses Act to cover Scotland, decriminalizing most private consensual sex acts between men.