Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual and Transgender (GLBT) History Month is intended to encourage honesty and openness about being gay, lesbian, bisexual or transgender. In addition, GLBT History Month also provides an opportunity to celebrate the contributions of gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender people to world history. The GLBT community is the only community worldwide that does not learn its history at home, in the public schools or in religious institutions.October was chosen in order to commemorate the anniversaries of the first two gay and lesbian marches on Washington, October 1979, which drew over 200,000 people, and October 1987, which drew over 500,000 people. In addition, National Coming Out Day is on October 11th. Since its beginnings, the Gay and Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation, Human Rights Campaign, National Gay and Lesbian Task Force, and other national organizations have endorsed this GLBT history month.
Resources:
- Equality Forum Conference
- A Gay History of the World
- GLBT Historical Society
- Gulf Coast Museum of GLBT History
- Official GLBT History Month
- People With a History
- Who's Who in GLBT History
Program Ideas:
- Invite guest speakers
- Host a movie dealing with GLBT history such as:
- Out of the Past: (70 minutes) 1998 film tracing the emergence of gays and lesbians in American history
- The Celluloid Closet: (101 minutes) 1995 Academy Award-winning documentary examining the cinematic representation of LGBT people and themes, based on the 1981 book by Vito Russo and narrated by Lily Tomlin
- Coming Out Under Fire: The History of Gay Men and Women in World War II (75 minutes) Based on the book of the same name
- The Times of Harvey Milk: (90 minutes) 1984 Academy Award-winning documentary on the life and assassination of the first gay man elected to public office in the U.S.
- Living With Pride: Ruth Ellis @ 100: (60 minutes) Explores a century of LGBT history by documenting the life and times of Ruth Ellis, who, before her death in 2000, was the oldest living African-American lesbian.
- Common Threads: Stories from the Quilt: (85 minutes) 1990 Academy Award-winning documentary which tells the human and political history of the AIDS epidemic through the stories behind panels of the NAMES Project Quilt
- Voices from the Front: (90 minutes) Focuses on the history of the AIDS civil disobedience movement led by ACT-UP
- Visual Displays: make bulletin boards in your residence halls or fill one of the display cases in the Student Union with information related to GLBT history, such as "Famous GLBT People" or "History of the Gay Rights Movement"
- For more activity and program ideas, click here
