Questions for 1975-1980
1.) Sgt. Leonard Matlovich became one of the first high profile individuals to say that he was gay and wanted to stay in the Armed forces. He delivered a letter to the Air Force on March 6, 1975 stating that he was homosexual and wanted to stay in the Air Force. On Sept. 8, 1975 he appeared on the cover of Time magazine Do you remember his case? How did this affect your opinion of the gay rights movement?
No. I have no important memories of this case. I have a vague memory of thinking it was completely unfair. In 75 I turned 20 and was involved in my own battle to achieve a measure of independence BUT when you brought this up I remembered males my age were split about 50/50 on the subject of gays in the military. 2.) Also in 1975 Mary Jo Risher became one of the most high profile lesbians to fight for custody of a child. Here fight was made into the made for TV movie 'A Question of Love' in 1978. Do you remember any similar custody cases from this period or do you remember the movie? What were its effects on you?
No recollection whatsoever of any of this3.) In June, 1976 the platform of the Democratic Party was put in place with no 'purple' plank - that is, there was no inclusion of a call for gay rights in the platform. This was a change from the 1972 platform where there was an 11 hour debate on issues such as gay rights - do you remember this - did this affect your opinions on politics at the time?
Yes, I remember this. I got into a fight with a guy in my dorm who kept saying fags needed to not be embraced but kiilled. He had no idea I was 1/2 a fag and thought I would support his view but after 9 or 10 beers I said know what, I'm half a fag and popped him in the jaw. He was surprised and bought more beer. 4.) As I have mentioned in the previous period, this period was preceded by the first LGBT candidates in office. Do you remember any candidates or campaigns for office in your area?
Yes, but i can't remember their names. I remember wondering how they could be so open when people said such awful things about gays. I respected them a great deal5.) In January 1977 Dade County Florida passed a Human Rights ordinance that became effective on Feb. 17 of that year and started Anita Bryant off on her 'Save Our Children' campaign. Do you remember the campaign?
YES. It was discussed in the family. My father supported it, which was to be expected as his son had been molested. Then he asked ME and I said she was nuts. I think that's when he knew definitively about me. He was also terminally ill by then and always scowled when he heard her after that and said she needed a good lay. What effect did it have on your local communities?
I remember people in Brooklyn talking about her. Some felt she was a great woman and others felt she had gone off the deep end.6.) Following the Dade County vote there were votes in other cities that overturned gay rights (including Eugene, Oregon; Saint Paul, MN and Wichita, Kansas). Were you living in any of these areas during the campaign or do you remember them?
I have no memory of any of it and was disconnected internally from all of it. It was gay, and too many gay people I'd tried to speak with either tried to take my pants off with sweet words or flat out said there were no bi men, that bi was a filling station on a roadtrip to gay. So I disconnected, not that I was ever very connected to begin with7.) Do you remember the Orange Juice boycott following the gay rights ordinances failure?
Yes. My family refused to buy juice, but started again when the 2 youngest complained8.] In California following the defeat of gay rights ordinances and the banning of gay teachers in Oklahoma and Arkansas Senator John Briggs, a former insurance salesman, proposed banning anyone from teaching who 'advocated, promoted or encouraged' homosexuality. Do you remember the Briggs initiative?
Yes. My response was to shrug and figure I should just stay quiet.Did it have any impact on discussions where you lived?
Yes, it was discussed all over the place. Oddly the very oldest thought it was wrong, most my age seemed to support it9.) Harvey Milk became a San Francisco City Councilman in November, 1977. Do you remember his election? Were you aware of his work against the Briggs initiative? When he was shot in city hall do you remember the coverage?
Just the coverage. Numerous people treated it as a joke, which I found awful. I used to say it was awful, and they'd say yeah it is, BUT...10.) In 1979 there were protests surrounding the film 'Cruising.' Do you remember the protests?
YES Did you see the film?
NODid you think the protests were justified?
YES. I thought it illuminated a crazy subculture and people would think everyone was like that. Plus I had my own reasons for running away from sadists.11.) On October 14, 1979 the first national gay rights march took place in Washington D.C. Were you there?
No If so, please share your memories.
none12.) Also in the 70s gay pride marches became more common - did you attend any gay pride marches in the 70s?
Yes, one What do you remember from them?
I was embarressed and wondered what leading a man on a leash was supposed to celebrate. I have never attended one since, and neither have any of the bi friends who were at that particular parade with me. Why? The aforementioned leash, and people giggling with a bitchy 'suuuure you are' when we said we were bi. We got approached a number of times at that parade, we were a good looking bunch. We did not like the skepticism. And felt we did not belong13.) Gay and lesbian books became big business during the late 70s. A few big titles were 'Rubyfruit Jungle', 'Taking Care of Mrs. Carroll', 'Sexual Outlaw', 'Dancer from the Dance', 'Tales of the City' and 'Faggots.' Do you remember reading these or any other LGBT books during this time?
Sexual Outlaw Did you visit any LGBT bookstores?
yes14.) There was also more coverage of LGBT issues on television including 'A Question of Love', 'The Naked Civil Servant', 'The War Widow', 'Sergeant Matlovich vs. U.S. Air Force' and T.V. shows like 'Soap.' Do you remember any particular gay/lesbian programing in the Seventies that caught your eye?
Soap. I related lol15.) In 1977 in San Francisco the murder of Robert Hillsborough by fag bashers sparked an outpouring of outrage and grief (
http://thecastro.net/parade/parade/hillsborough77.html) and led to the formation of Community United Against Violence, an organization that keeps statistics on violence against LGBT people. Do you remember any violence of this nature in your area?
I knew it was always possible, especially in the Village where kids from uptown came to prey on gay men. I was much less worried about anything in the then tightly woven neighborhoods of Brooklyn, where--at least in my area-- everybody knew SOMEbody, or had one in the family, or knew soandso's brother. It was surprisingly live and let live unless you were a flamboyant queen. They would suggest you take it to Manhattan. Where I lived I always felt lesbians were more likely to be hurt; there were a lot of macho guys there and some took lesbianism as a personal affront. This all changed for the worse when drugs became widespread16.) As we discussed in the last time period discos were very popular during this period. Did you go to gay discos in your area?
yeah Do you have any particular memories?
yeah. bad music and older gay men who tried to pay for sex. If you didn't like disco were there alternative spaces for people like you to get together?
yeah, straight rock clubs. The whole bi group usually ended up in straight rock clubs and someone always ended up going home with a rocker our age. But we all drank too much and mostly went to bars, usually straight ones. The gay ones were a pain, someone older would always bug you.17.) The punk movement also happened during this period. As a group punks had both positive and negative responses to homosexuality - do your remember any of these? Did you know about the Tom Robinson Band?
yeah i didn't care for it Did you know about Wayne County and the Electric Chairs?
ditto18.) In Canada the Truxx bar was raided in Montreal and 'The Body Politic' was the national gay newspaper. Do you remember reading the 'Body Politic' or the raids in Montreal?
no19.) In the late 70s the 'Rocky Horror Picture Show' gave a lot of young people a non-threatening way to deal with sexual diversity and fun. Did you attend the 'Rocky Horror Picture Show' during this period?
Yes Do you have any memories to share?
I never got obsessed by it like my friends, but it was ok. On the silly side.20.) It was also during this period that Gay film festivals started - beginning in San Francisco in 1977. Do you remember any particular films from this period? Did you see 'Outrageous'? Do you remember seeing 'Word Is Out'?
Yeah, The Word Is Out. It didn't really apply to us...at least that's how we felt at the time. Gay sex was something we all did but a gay lifestyle just seemed, I dunno, false to every one of us, for us. We weren't gay, so why behave 'gay'?21.) The 'White Night Riots' happened in San Francisco on May 21, 1979 in response to the verdicts of the murder trial of Dan White. Were you in San Francisco at the time? Do you remember the White Night Riots? If so, please share your memories.
No, No and NoOf course, as always, please feel free to add your own questions. My apologies for this being centered around U.S. events - it's what I know. However, if you are from another country, please tell us about what was happening where you lived during this period.
I honestly don't know if our experiences are appropriate for the thread.[ I would like to see what 2 friends from that group--one a a fireman and the other a disco king who would NEVER have acted as a gay disco king although he slept with half the men in NY--have to say or add...] We were a subgroup of a subgroup and got bashed for it on both sides, by straight AND gay people. There was more acceptance by gay men, but verbal bashing by others who claimed we didn't exist. You had to watch yourself, what you said, who you said it to within the gay community.