LGBT History

As longtime readers know, there are four or five JMG entries that I repost every year. This is one of them. My dear friend Daniel Johnson, who threw the most kickass Groundhog Day birthday parties for himself, would have been 61 years old today. His was a life that burned brightly and I am illuminated still. Daniel Johnson, 1957-1997. I …

The San Francisco Chronicle reports: The sun has quietly set on the Gangway, San Francisco’s oldest continuously operating gay bar. Bookending an ownership saga that started two years ago, the transfer of the bar’s liquor license became final on Friday, according to the California Department of Alcoholic Beverage Control. On Sunday, the historic establishment hosted its final night of revelry. …

Activist Peter Staley writes on Facebook: My greatest AIDS hero died a few hours ago. Dr. Mathilde Krim, founder of amfAR, warrior against homophobia and AIDS-related stigma, dedicated defender of science and public health, and mother-figure and mentor to countless activists, will leave a deep hole in the continued fight against AIDS — a fight she dedicated her life to. …

ABOVE: At the 1985 Xmas party described below: Me, Michael, and Barney. Originally posted May 2004. Reposted for World AIDS Day. Michael didn’t look good. We were at his annual Christmas luau party. Tons and tons of people in the house and the backyard. Standing in his kitchen, wearing a grass skirt and a ridiculous Santa hat covered in sequins, …

The CBC reports: The Canadian government has tabled [introduced] a bill that will allow people convicted of historical same-sex offences to have their criminal records expunged. Proposed legislation aims to correct a “historical injustice” now recognized as the criminalization of same-sex activity by consenting adults, effectively removing from the record convictions that would today be inconsistent with the Charter of …

Reuters reports: Scotland’s devolved government issued an apology on Tuesday to men convicted in the past for same-sex activity and passed a new law which will allow them to clear their names. “It is only right that we address this historic wrong,” First Minister Nicola Sturgeon told the Scottish parliament. Discriminatory laws, although abolished, continue to have implications for people …

Variety reports: Matt Bomer will make his Broadway debut (following his one-night-only appearance in “8“) in “The Boys in the Band,” a new revival of the landmark 1968 drama to be directed by Joe Mantello with a cast that includes Jim Parsons, Zachary Quinto and Andrew Rannells. Ryan Murphy, the TV megaproducer (“Glee,” “American Horror Story,” “American Crime Story: The …

This week it’s been 25 years since the simultaneous release of Madonna’s Erotica album and her still controversial S&M-filled coffee table book, Sex. Legendary Rolling Stone critic (and longtime JMG reader) Barry Walters has written a deep dive into their legacy and how they addressed the then-raging AIDS pandemic, which tore through Madonna’s inner circle. Walters unpacks quite a bit, …

Posted tonight to President Obama’s Facebook page: America’s long journey towards equality has been guided by countless small acts of persistence, and fueled by the stubborn willingness of quiet heroes to speak out for what’s right. Few were as small in stature as Edie Windsor – and few made as big a difference to America. I had the privilege to …

From the ACLU: Today, we lost one of this country’s great civil rights pioneers, Edie Windsor. The wheels of progress turn forward because of people like Edie who are willing to stand up in the face of injustice. One simply cannot write the history of the gay rights movement without reserving immense credit and gratitude for Edie Windsor. We were …

The New York Times reports: Edith Windsor, the gay-rights activist whose landmark Supreme Court case struck down the Defense of Marriage Act in 2013 and granted same-sex married couples federal recognition for the first time and rights to myriad federal benefits, died on Tuesday in Manhattan. She was 88. Her wife, Judith Kasen-Windsor, confirmed the death but did not specify …

Gentle readers, today is Madonna’s 59th birthday. Below is a short story that first appeared on JMG on this day in 2006, a date which, as you’ll see, plays a role in the story. Ricky Loved Madonna Twenty years ago today, August 16th 1986, I was a few months into a new job with AMC Theatres, a position that I …

TV Line reports: To the tune of Nat King Cole’s “L-O-V-E,” Late Late Show host James Corden saluted transgender troops, who will no longer be allowed to serve in the army according to President Donald Trump. The musical number, which opened Wednesday’s episode, took aim at POTUS for announcing via a series of tweets that people who identify as transgender …

Its cringeworthy title aside, Britain’s Channel 4 this week broadcast a fascinating look at gay life in the 70s and 80s in which host Rupert Everett tours demised gay bars and cruising sites, pondering whether things were more fun when gays were outsiders to mainstream British society. The Telegraph reviews: Everett idiosyncratically explored the changes in gay life in the …

Tracy Baim reports at the Windy City Times: Chuck Renslow, 87, a longtime pillar of the LGBTQ community in Chicago and around the world, has died after multiple long-term health issues. Renslow reigned over a seven-decade empire, starting more than two dozen businesses—bars, discos, photo studios, health clubs, bathhouses, gay magazines and newspapers, hotels, restaurants and bookstores. He fostered organizations …

It was 48 years ago this week that the queer community of New York City finally said “Enough!” As I’ve done for the last few years on this day, I’m reposting the story that the New York Daily News ran one week after the Stonewall Riots. Note how the story drips with condescension and ridicule. We’ve come a long, long …

I believe this is a first. Via press release: Governor Andrew M. Cuomo today directed the spire of One World Trade Center and the Kosciuszko Bridge to be lit this weekend in honor of LGBT pride. The iconic landmarks will be lit the colors of the transgender flag for Trans Day of Action today, June 23rd and the colors of …

Germany’s The Local reports: Germany’s parliament voted Thursday to quash the convictions of 50,000 gay men sentenced for homosexuality under a Nazi-era law which remained in force after the war and offer compensation. After decades of lobbying, victims and activists hailed a triumph in the struggle to clear the names of gay men who lived with a criminal record under …

Cincinnati’s ABC affiliate reports: The city honored the Cincinnati native who was the lead plaintiff in the Supreme Court case that declared same-sex marriage legal across the U.S.  City council members voted unanimously Wednesday to give Mercer Street the honorary name “John Arthur & Jim Obergefell Way” after Obergefell, the plaintiff in the case, and Arthur, his deceased husband. “John …

The Orlando Sentinel reports: As he walked up to the Pulse nightclub, memories of last June clouded Ramses Tinoco’s head. He still remembered hearing the gunshots. He remembered running for his life. But the place that has haunted him for a year was different early Monday. Dozens of angels stood guard outside, their wings made of PVC pipes and flowing …