June 27, 2021 marks the 50th anniversary of Atlanta’s first gay pri march. Here’s a look back at some key moments that shaped the cy’s LGBTQ mu
Contents:
- GEIA GAY LIBERATN FRONT AND ATLANTA’S FIRST PRI MARCH
- 50 YEARS AGO, ATLANTA’S GAY RIGHTS PH TOOK TO STREET FOR FIRST TIME
GEIA GAY LIBERATN FRONT AND ATLANTA’S FIRST PRI MARCH
A short acunt of the Gay Liberatn Front the UK, wrten by Stuart Feather. * georgia gay liberation front *
(Via Geia State Universy) Makgs of a march Gay Liberatn Fronts formed around the untry after the Stonewall Rts, so the template existed for a GLF to e together Geia, remembers Dave Hayward, who moved to Atlanta late 1971 and beme part of the GGLF’s re llective. First mastream media verage Judy Lambert, whose hband was bisexual, joed Smh as -chair of the GGLF for the 1972 Pri march, which Hayward says was famo for s lack of support om the gay bars at the time, the Cove and Sweet Gum Head particular.
1918: Eight s after her ath, Dorothy Vogel’s dghter expos her mother as an Atlantan lbian a tell-all, reuntg her mother’s relatnships wh women a seri of photographs — photographs that would have damned her mother the anti-homosexual turn-of-the-century. On the 4th July Lbians and Gay Men om the Matache Society New York, rponse to the rts, staged a walk-out and moved to the Alternative Universy Greenwich Village where they found what beme the Gay Liberatn Front. “Not only did liberatnists go to Philalphia to show solidary wh the black movement, but was there that Huey Newton as lear of the Panthers, first gave clear support of the Gay Cse, sayg that homosexuals were maybe the most opprsed people of Amerin society, and uld well be the most revolutnary.
On 13th November, GLF ma the first ever, public monstratn the UK by lbians and gay men at Highbury Fields, Islgton, to prott the e of “pretty policemen” agent provotrs ed by the police to entrap gay men to attemptg acts of gross cency, a standard police practice and an easy way for them to crease the figur for crime tectn and prosecutn. An Anti-Psychiatry Group foced on analysg and attackg the Psychiatric Establishments wholale acceptance of Juo Christian prejudice, Biblil thory, and the e of electric shock/emetic dg programm on gays and lbians who did not f , or who were found guilty of breakg the law.
50 YEARS AGO, ATLANTA’S GAY RIGHTS PH TOOK TO STREET FOR FIRST TIME
An Actn Group anisg public GLF danc held lol town halls, and later the Gay Days the parks, an Office Collective, and the Steerg Group, later the Co-ordatg Commtee to n the Wednday night General Meetgs.
But gay men don’t need to opprs women orr to fulfil their own psycho-sexual needs, and gay women don’t have to relate sexually to the male opprsor, so that at this moment time, the et and most equal relatnships are most likely to be between homosexuals. In all about a hundred gay men and lbians were active the var GLF Groups, while by mid-January, ’71 there were up to five hundred people a week attendg the General Meetg, which suggts that many thoands of gay men and lbians passed through the doors. David Rben’s book, “Everythg you wanted to know about sex – but were aaid to ask”, which claimed to tell ndid facts whilst avoidg moral judgement and the sectns on gays and lbians ntaed referenc to light bulbs, cucumbers, and the e of wire at hangers for abortns.
At the end of ’71 ser spls were occurrg between the men who saw ‘g out’ as only the first step the transformatn of gay men and the send the nontatn wh the social ials of masculy, and sexism, whilst followg the Manifto aim of movg toward munal livg.