Before Carl Nassib, Michael Sam was the NFL’s first openly gay draft pick - The Washgton Post

first openly gay

Forty years ago, on Nov. 27, 1978, California's first openly gay elected official was assassated. Harvey Milk champned gay rights and challenged the LGBTQ muny to be out and proud.

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CARL NASSIB, THE FIRST OPENLY GAY N.F.L. PLAYER, HAS BEEN A FOOTBALL EVERYMAN

Before Nassib beme the first openly gay active NFL player, others paved the way — and paid a steep st. * first openly gay *

Harvey Milk, was a visnary civil and human rights lear who beme one of the first openly gay elected officials the Uned Stat when he won a seat on the San Francis Board of Supervisors 1977. Milk’s unprecented loud and unapologetic proclamatn of his thenticy as an openly gay ndidate for public office, and his subsequent electn gave never before experienced hope to Lbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgenr (LGBT) people everywhere at a time when the muny was enunterg wispread hostily and discrimatn. He knew he was gay by the time he attend Bayshore high school, where he was a popular stunt wh wi-rangg terts, om opera to playg football.

After some area merchants tried to prevent two gay men om openg a store, Milk and a few other bs owners found the Castro Village Associatn, a first the natn anizg of predomantly LGBT bs, wh Milk as print. His close iend and ally Mayor Gee Mosne, appoted him to the cy’s Board of Perm Appeals, makg Milk the first openly gay cy missner the Uned Stat.

His amb reform agenda clud protectg gay rights—he sponsored an important anti-discrimatn bill—as well as tablishg day re centers for workg mothers, the nversn of ary facili the cy to low-st hog, reform of the tax to attract dtry to serted wareho and factori, and other issu.

A BRIEF HISTORY OF OPENLY GAY OLYMPIANS

* first openly gay *

One of the was a California ballot iative, Proposn 6, which would have mandated the firg of gay teachers the state’s public schools. State Senator John Briggs, seekg to marshal anti-gay sentiment and an agenda of hate and dimishment for polil ga, spearhead the iative.

RAIRS’ CARL NASSIB ANNOUNC HE’S GAY, AN N.F.L. FIRST

The Rairs fensive leman me out a statement posted to his Instagram acunt on Monday, beg the first active player the league to publicly intify as gay. * first openly gay *

Wh strong, effective opposn om Milk and others, was feated at a time when other polil attacks on gay people were beg succsfully waged around the US. In one of his eloquent speech, Milk spoke of the Amerin ial of equaly, proclaimg, “Gay people, we will not w our rights by stayg quietly our closets. He pneered the buildg of alns between diverse groups-women, asians, hispanics, the disabled-and even brought together the teamsters and gay bar owners— return for a pledge om the teamsters to hire more gay drivers, Milk asked bar owners to stop sellg beer om certa distributors while drivers were strikg.

PETE BUTTIGIEG BE FIRST OPENLY GAY BET SECRETARY NFIRMED BY U.S. SENATE

Pete Buttigieg was nfirmed by the U.S. Senate on Tuday on an 86-13 vote to head the U.S. Transportatn Department, the first openly gay U.S. Cabet secretary nfirmed by lawmakers. * first openly gay *

Given the hatred directed at gay people general and Milk particular—he received daily ath threats—he was aware of the likelihood that he may well be assassated. The cy suffered property damage and police officers retaliated by raidg the Castro, vandalizg gay bs and beatg people on the street.

The more gay people me out of the closet, he believed, the more their fai and iends would support protectns for their equal rights. In the years sce Milk’s assassatn, public opn has shifted on gay marriage, gays the ary, and other issu, and there have been hundreds of openly LGBT public officials Ameri, yet the work ntu.

BEFORE CARL NASSIB, MICHAEL SAM WAS THE NFL’S FIRST OPENLY GAY DRAFT PICK. HE NEVER PLAYED A REGULAR SEASON GAME.

" 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. Keepg his homosexualy a secret at first, Milk beme more openly gay through his exposure to New York Cy’s bohemian theater scene. Wng a seat on the cy’s Board of Supervisors, he emerged as one of the untry’s preement openly gay elected officials, spearheadg an important anti-discrimatn measure.

5 THGS TO KNOW ABOUT THE MCU'S FIRST OPENLY GAY SUPER-POWERED CHARACTER

The send son of William and Merva Milk, he me om a fay wh proment ti to the muny: His Lhuanian-born grandfather Morris owned Milk’s Dry Goods, which beme the largt partment store on Long Island, and had helped anize the area’s first realized he was gay at an early age, and reportedly was dulgg his sir wh illic trysts by his early teens. A fancial analyst by day, he joed iends to march protts of the Vietnam War while enjoyg the cy’s thrivg gay social scene after hours. ”Mayor of Castro Street Milk moved back to San Francis for good late 1972, and wh a few months he opened a mera shop on Castro Street, the heart of the gay muny.

INDIA'S FIRST OPENLY GAY PRCE SAYS PARENTS WANTED HIM TO HAVE 'NVERSN BRA SURGERY'

Partly spired by what he viewed as an unfair tax on small bs, he cid to n for a seat on the San Francis Board of Supervisors was spurned by much of the cy’s more fluential gay electorate, who felt the outspoken New Yorker should tone down his act and wa his turn. Addnally, Milk fed an alliance wh the Teamsters Unn by supportg a boytt of Coors beer, and the unn returned the favor by promisg to hire more gay drivers.

*BEAR-MAGAZINE.COM* FIRST OPENLY GAY

Why 'Openly Gay' Is an Offensive Term .

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