October is LGBTQ History Month, something we take very seriously on the PghLesbian blog and via the #AMPLIFY project.
To help us honor our history, we are planning to publish guest post from LGBTQ neighbors and allies describing the local and regional history they believe we should remember. This will be part of a permanent archive capturing our lived experiences in our own voices. You can participate in multiple ways.
First, you can consider writing a brief post about a historical LGBTQ event or topic. It is a very loose definition. You could share your memories of Stonewall or the the Valentine’s Day Raid at the Travelers Club. You could talk about your brother coming out (with his permission, of course) or Ellen coming out or your memories of someone who never did come out. Maybe you knew David Piergalski, Andre Gray, or Jamie Stickle. Or perhaps you remember what was precious about pridefest in the early days or walking into the GLCC (now the Pgh Equality Center) for the first time. Your first OUTrageous Bingo or maybe your first PFLAG meeting, on your own or to support a friend.
The most important thing is to mention why this piece of history resonates with you. Why should people care about it and/or the people involved? Even if you’ve never considered this before, that’s your angle. Tell us why it matters.
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This can be a few simple paragraphs. Don’t worry about your writing or editing. What matters is your story. Share a photo with a brief caption.
Second, we are looking for donors with an interest in preserving history to help us fund this project. Donations from $10-$100 will help us with the practical matter like webhosting fees, paying our local gay-owned webmaster for his work, Facebook ads to promote your posts to the larger community and other expenses. This will also help us continue to work on AMPLIFY. We will acknowledge donors on the blog and via social media. Persad is our fiscal sponsor. You can donate here if you are interested – and we’d really appreciate your support.
If you are interested in either or both options, please email me pghlesbian @ gmail.com
Read some previous guest blogger posts here and some posts from 2009 here and here
When we think of the history of LGBT rights we often think of New York (the Stonewall uprising), Los Angeles (the founding of Mattachine and Harry Hay) or even Miami (the Anita Bryant campaign); however Philadelphia plays an important role in this history. Philly was where the first national convention of “Homophile” organizations met at the Drake Hotel, and the place where the first televised public demonstration for gay rights took place: July 4, 1965 in front of Independence Hall. Lesbian pioneer Barbara Gittings is an honored daughter of this city. As a proud Philadelphian I want the City of Brotherly Love & Sisterly Affection recognized for it’s place in LGBT history.