#TodayInQueerHistory
April 5 (1997)
Poet Allen Ginsberg expressed his desires openly in his writing died #OTD. He challenged accusations of obscenity and had laws changed.
In his Who's Who entry, he listed his partner Peter Orlovsky as his spouse.
Allen is best known for his poem Howl.
#TodayInQueerHistory
April 4 (1981)
Liberté! Egalité! Fraternité!
Over 10k people took to Paros' streets in a march organised by the Comité d'urgence anti-répression homosexuelle.
This pioneering protest was a real turning point for LGBTQIA+ rights and activism in France and led to Paris Pride.
#TodayInQueerHistory
April 3 (1895)
After receiving a note accusing him of being "a posing somdomite" Oscar Wilde takes the Marquess of Queensbury to court for criminal libel.
The trial began #OTD. Given Wilde's way with words, it was treated as threatre.
The trial did not find for Wilde...
#TodayInQueerHistory
April 2 (1974)
Kathy Kozachenko is elected to public office, winning a seat on Ann Arbor City Council.
Kathy is the first openly LGBTQIA+ person to be elected to office in the US. Kathy served for 2 years, and was an activist and organiser after her term.
#TodayInQueerHistory
April 1 (1942)
Sci-fi writer and literary critic Samuel R. Delany is born. His well-known works include Nova and Dhalgren, and he has won Hugo and Nebula awards.
Delany has described himself as gay since he was an adolescent, and his works explore sexuality and society.
#TodayInQueerHistory
March 31 (2009)
Rachel Crandall Crocker creates Trans Day of Visibility. Rachel created the day to celebrate the trans community, she describes it as a "day to focus on the living."
She was frustrated that the only other trans-focussed day was Trans Day of Remembrance
#TodayInQueerHistory
March 30 (1834)
Famed diarist and industrialist Anne Lister weds her partner Ann Walker in a private blessing ceremony in Holy Trinity Church in Goodramgate in Halifax. The church now has a special plaque to commemorate the event.
#TodayInQueerHistory
29 March (2009)
Bookshops are incredible spaces, and queer bookshops have been vital lifelines and community hubs.
#OTD, the Oscar Wilde Bookshop in NYC closes; citing the financial depression and competition from online retailers. It was founded by Craig Rodwell in 1967.
#TodayInQueerHistory
28 March (1933)
Pink Narcissus is an iconic film. The stylised visuals are sumptuous and dreamy. It was made by James Bidgood, who was born #OTD.
The film is a series of fantasies and day dreams. I explore some of these in Hotties In Art www.waterstones.com/book/museum-...
#TodayInQueerHistory
27 March (1943)
"Tell people that homosexuals are not cowards."
Willem Arondeus, and others, launched an assault on the Public Records Office in Amsterdam. Their aim? To disrupt Nazi efforts to identify Jewish Dutch people and other targets.
They destroyed 800k records.
#TodayInQueerHistory
26 March (1962)
After playing in the band Bronski Beat and topping the charts with The Communards, Richard Cole (born #OTD - happy birthday Richard 🎂🎂) became a popular writer and broadcaster. He is now a member of the clergy and has some very good dogs.
#TodayInQueerHistory
25 March (1998)
The Trevor Project was founded #OTD.
Providing help and support to young people, particularly young LGBTQIA+ people, in crisis. The Trevor Project has helped thousands of young people access support and resources.
#TodayInQueerHistory
24 March (1987)
It's 7 in the morning. 250 ACT UP members take to Wall Street in protest. They demands were simple; access to life saving medications and for a coordinated effort to fight HIV/AIDS. 17 protesters were arrested for civil disobedience.
#TodayInQueerHistory
23 March (1874)
Advertising artist extraordinaire, J.C. Leyendecker was born #OTD.
J.C. spent 50+ years in the biz. There's evidence that his hunky drawings were based on his bf.
You can find out more about J.C & his work in Hotties in Art www.waterstones.com/book/museum-...
#TodayInQueerHistory
22 March (1990)
Howard Ashman and Alan Menken win the Oscar for Under the Sea, launching the Disney Renaissance.
Ashman received a posthumous Oscar in 1992 for Beauty and the Beast. His partner Bill said "This is the first Academy Award given to someone we've lost to AIDS."
#TodayInQueerHistory
21 March (1994)
And the Oscar goes too...
Tom Hanks wins Best Actor for Philadelphia. About the film, he has said:
"The whole point of ‘Philadelphia’ was don’t be afraid. One of the reasons people weren’t afraid of that movie is that I was playing a gay man."
#TodayInQueerHistory
20 March (1945)
OG demon twink, Lord Alfred Douglas (Bosie) died #OTD. He died in reduced circumstances, with few mourners.
Bosie triggered Oscar Wilde's spectacular fall from grace.
He originated the phrase "the love that dare not speak it's name" in poem Two Loves (1892).
#TodayInQueerHistory
March 19 (1987)
AZT was approved by the FDA to treat HIV/AIDS, approved in record time due to the desperate need for treatment.
3 of the AZT researchers; Sir J W Black, Drs Elion & Hitchens won the 1988 Nobel Prize for "discoveries of important principles for drug treatment."
#TodayInQueerHistory
March 18 (1893)
"Dulce et Decorum Est pro patria mori"
The old lie, according to poet Wilfred Owen who was born #OTD.
Wilfred's poetry captured the horrors of the first world war. His other works, like Shadwell Stair, speaks to the queer experience.
#TodayInQueerHistory
March 17 (1994)
Singer and all around icon, Holly Johnson, best known as the lead vocalist for Frankie Goes To Hollywood, released his autobiography A Bone in My Flute #OTD.
He was inspired to write his life story after getting a positive HIV diagnosis in 1991.
#TodayInQueerHistory
March 16 (1949)
Whether you know him from Titanic, The First Wives' Club, Legally Blonde, Alias, the Arrowverse or even his unforgettable guest spot on Schitt's Creek, chances are you know Victor Garber from *somewhere*.
Born #OTD the actor has had a prolific career.
#TodayInQueerHistory
March 15 (1926)
Ruth Simpson, an author, historian, community leader and founder of the US's first lesbian community centre was born #OTD.
She recorded the history of the early gay rights movement in her 1976 book From the Closets to the Courts.
#TodayInQueerHistory
March 14 (2006)
Prince Manvendra Kumar Singh Gohil makes headlines as his coming out begins to hit news outlets: he is, probably, the 1st openly gay prince in the world.
In 2000 he started the Lakshya Trust, which supports education around HIV, and LGBTQIA+ issues in India.
#TodayInQueerHistory
March 13 (1990)
Category is... Iconic Documentary Realness!
The legendary queens of Paris is Burning strut their stuff in balls, reading the house down boots as the documentary that opened the door to ballroom culture premières in cinemas #OTD.
#TodayInQueerHistory
March 12 (2020)
Intelligence analyst turned whistleblower Chelsea Manning is released from prison #OTD. She was jailed for refusing to testify against wikileaks founder, Julian Assange.
Chelsea previously shared around 750k documents to wikileaks, exposing unethical behaviour.
#TodayInQueerHistory
March 11 (1544)
Torquato Tasso (born #OTD) was on the brink of being crowned the King of Poets by the Pope. Although largely forgotten today, for c.300 years he was one of the most widely read European poets.
His poetry played it straight, his letters reveal his love of men.
#TodayInQueerHistory
March 10 (1987)
ACT UP (AIDS Coalition to Unleash Power) begins to coalesce after Larry Kramer (known for his play The Normal Heart) gives a speech at Manhattan's Lesbian and Gay Community Centre, calling for an AIDS activist group.
#TodayInQueerHistory
Match 9 (1989)
Robert Mapplethorpe's photos are instantly recognisable. In Just Kids, Patti Smith described his approach: "He worked without apology, investing the homosexual with grandeur, masculinity, and enviable nobility."
He died #OTD due to complications with HIV/AIDS.
#TodayInQueerHistory
March 8 (1951)
🩵🩷🤍🩷🩵
Monica Helms, creator of the trans flag was born #OTD. Her original flag is part of the Smithsonian Museum's collection, preserving it for the future.
As well as an artist and activist, Monica is a Navy veteran and published sci-fi author too!
#TodayInQueerHistory
March 7 (1988)
"I can stand on stage and do nothing, and people will write 'Divine was outrageous.'"
The divine Divine, icon, performer, singer and John Waters: muse died #OTD.
Divine is remembered for her fearless performances, barbs, quips and her unique perspective.
