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PALM SPRGS’ FIRST OPENLY GAY BLACK MAYOR DISCS CHANG CY SHOULD MAKE
" Beyond her LGBTQ activism, DeLarverie also anized and performed at fundraisers for women who suffered om domtic vlence and their Jam Baldw (Photo by Ted Thai)The LIFE Picture Collectn/GettyJam Baldw (1924-1987)A wrer and social cric, Baldw is perhaps bt known for his 1955 llectn of says, "Not of a Native Son, " and his groundbreakg 1956 novel, "Gvanni's Room, " which picts them of homosexualy and bisexualy. Baldw spent a majory of his lerary and activist reer tg others about Black and queer inty, as he did durg his famo lecture tled “Race, Racism, and the Gay Communy” at a meetg of the New York chapter of Black and Whe Men Together (now known as Men of All Colors Together) and playwright Lorrae Hansberry her New York Cy apartment April Attie / Getty ImagLorrae Hansberry (1930-1965)Hansberry was an activist and playwright bt known for her groundbreakg play “A Rais the Sun, ” about a stgglg Black fay on Chigo’s South Si. The inic work was then ma to a 1961 film starrg Sidney Poier and Ruby to “A Rais the Sun” fame, Hansberry — who never publicly acknowledged she was a lbian — joed lbian rights group Dghters of Bilis and ntributed letters about femism and homophobia to s magaze, “The Ladr, ” acrdg to LGBTQ historian Eric Marc, host of the “Makg Gay History” podst.
Now 79, Miss Major, known to many simply as “Mama, ” ris Ltle Rock, Arkansas, where she ntu to be a vol Sprg's mayor Ron On, April 18, Khan / LA Tim via Getty ImagRon On (Born 1950)When On was elected mayor of Palm Sprgs, California 2003, he ma history by beg the first openly gay Ain Amerin man elected mayor of an Amerin cy. The imag of that moment looked like a sneak preview of a New Ameri breakg through – a black, gay woman kissg her whe wife before a mi-rabow aln of onlookers. Many of the same black voters who asked her to lead their cy wouldn’t dare ask her to lead their own church bee she is a gay woman.
And while largely whe nomatns like the Uned Church of Christ, the Epispal Church and the Prbyterian Church (USA) affirm gays and lbians, most black church Ameri still have a “don’t ask, don’t tell” policy that forc s LGBTQ members to live the closet or be nsumed by self-loathg. She won the key endorsement of a black Gospel rerdg mogul reared a church that nsirs homosexualy a s.