1987: In London, more than 100 lesbians and gay men stage a kiss-in at Piccadilly Circus in defiance of the Sexual Offences Act, which decriminalized private sex acts between consenting adults but left public displays of same-sex affection a misdemeanor.
1637: The Plymouth, Massachusetts court finds John Allexander and Thomas Roberts guilty of “often spending their seed one upon the other.” The Plymouth crime of “sodomy” was not mentioned in connection with the case, for “sodomy,” then, required “penetration,” not mere emission, even if this emission was mutual, and “often.” The class difference of the … Read More
1970: In New York City, the Rockefeller Five appear in court, but their trial is postponed (charges are later dismissed). Daughters of Bilitis activist Isabel Miller (which is a pseudonym of Alma Routsong) is among the speakers at a rally held after their court appearance. 2011: The United States Court of Appeals for the Eighth … Read More
1982: In France, the Age of Consent for same-sex acts is lowered from 21 to 15, the same as for heterosexual acts. 2010: Chief U.S. District Judge Vaughn Walker rules that Proposition 8, the 2008 referendum that banned same-sex marriage in California, violates the 14th Amendment’s equal protection clause. 2011: President Barack Obama signs a … Read More
1982: Twenty-eight-year-old gay Atlantan Michael Hardwick is arrested on sodomy charges after police-trying to serve a warrant for a minor traffic violation-show up at his home and find him in bed performing fellatio on a male companion. “I’m in bed with this guy,” says Hardwick later, “and I hear the door to my room open. … Read More
1986: Roy Cohn dies of AIDS in Bethesda, Maryland, asserting to his last breathe that he has liver cancer. 1995: U.S. President Bill Clinton signs Executive Order 12968, which bans discrimination based on “sexual orientation” as it establishes uniform policies for allowing government employees access to classified information.
1995: After refusing to allow the Gay and Lesbian Association of Zimbabwe to exhibit at a human rights book fair, President Robert Mugabe opens the fair with an attack on lesbians and gay men, saying they are alien to African traditions and that he doesn’t believe “they have any rights at all.” 1996: Representative … Read More
1940: The German Reich Commissar of the occupied Netherlands territories makes all sexual activities between men illegal. 1965: Lesbian and gay demonstrators picket the Pentagon to protest discrimination in the military. 1969: In New York City, militants separate from the more moderate homophile movement to form a counterculture-inspired group they vote to call the “Gay Liberation Front”. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gay_Liberation_Front … Read More
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