California state Sen. Scott Wiener (D) has introduced a bill designed specifically to protect LGBTQ+ youth in foster care.
S.B. 407 seeks to require that the unique needs of LGBTQ+ youth are considered when assessing the fitness of home. Under the bill, homes in which potential foster parents are not supportive of LGBTQ+ identities would be considered ineligible to foster.
“My dad grew up watching you as Wonder Woman,” the trans woman wrote. “Unfortunately he isn’t as open minded as you.”
“Every child deserves to be one hundred percent supported at home,” Wiener told the Los Angeles Blade. “S.B. 407 ensures that foster youth receive this essential support by specifically requiring LGBTQ acceptance be considered in the resource family approval (RFA) process, creating standard documentation for the assessment of LGBTQ youth needs, and ensuring more frequent follow-up. These youth are at high risk for homelessness, criminal justice involvement, and mental health issues, and we must do everything in our power to ensure they have a safe home in the state of California.”
The bill states that at least three studies estimate that approximately thirty percent of youth in foster care identify as LGBTQ+ and that these kids “have a right to be placed in out-of-home care according to their gender identity and the right to have caregivers that have received instruction on cultural competency and sensitivity” regarding caring for LGBTQ+ youth.
It also stated that LGBTQ+ foster youth who are currently being placed with families that do not affirm them are experiencing “additional harm and trauma.” It cites the Trevor Project, which found that teens with parental support for their gender identity were 93% less likely to attempt suicide.
Since 2019, California’s Foster Youth Bill of Rights has included a child’s right to have their LGBTQ+ identity affirmed, as well as the right to keep it private if they want to. But those rights have not yet been applied to the placement process.
“LGBTQ+ foster youth experience violence and other stressors unique to the LGBTQ+ community, including homophobia or transphobia,” Tony Hoang, Executive Director of Equality California, a sponsor of the bill, told the Blade.
“S.B. 407 protects LGBTQ+ foster youth from being placed in non-affirming homes by creating standard guidelines and criteria that carefully screens potential families. LGBTQ+ foster youth need a healthy environment that supports and embraces them as they explore their identity.”
Uganda’s parliament passed a law on Tuesday making it a crime to identify as LGBTQ, handing authorities broad powers to target gay Ugandans who already face legal discrimination and mob violence.
More than 30 African countries, including Uganda, already ban same-sex relations. The new law appears to be the first to outlaw merely identifying as lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and queer (LGBTQ), according to rights group Human Rights Watch.
In addition to same-sex intercourse, the law bans promoting and abetting homosexuality as well as conspiracy to engage in homosexuality.
Violations under the law draw severe penalties, including death for so-called aggravated homosexuality and life in prison for gay sex. Aggravated homosexuality involves gay sex with people under the age of 18 or when the perpetrator is HIV positive, among other categories, according to the law.
The legislation will be sent to President Yoweri Museveni to be signed into law.
Frank Mugisha, a prominent Ugandan LGBTQ activist denounced the legislation as draconian.
“This law is very extreme and draconian … it criminalizes being an LGBTQ person, but also they are trying to erase the entire existence of any LGBTQ Ugandan,” he said.
Museveni has not commented on the current proposal but he has long opposed LGBTQ rights and signed an anti-LGBTQ law in 2013 that Western countries condemned before a domestic court struck it down on procedural grounds.
Supporters of the new law say it is needed to punish a broader array of LGBTQ activities, which they say threaten traditional values in the conservative and religious East African nation.
“Our creator God is happy (about) what is happening … I support the bill to protect the future of our children,” lawmaker David Bahati said during debate on the bill.
“This is about the sovereignty of our nation, nobody should blackmail us, nobody should intimidate us.”
In recent weeks, Uganda authorities have cracked down on LGBTQ people after religious leaders and politicians alleged students were being recruited into homosexuality in schools.
This month, authorities arrested a secondary school teacher in the eastern district of Jinja over accusations of “grooming of young girls into unnatural sex practices”.
She was subsequently charged with gross indecency and is in prison awaiting trial.
The police said on Monday they had arrested six people accused of running a network that was “actively involved in the grooming of young boys into acts of sodomy.”
A bill introduced in Uganda’s Parliament criminalizing same-sex conduct and sexual and gender identity, if adopted, would violate multiple fundamental rights, Human Rights Watch said today. Among others, such a law would violate the rights to freedom of expression and association privacy, equality, and nondiscrimination.
On March 9, 2023, Asuman Basalirwa, a member of parliament, introduced the 2023 Anti-Homosexuality Bill in Parliament. The bill is a revised and more egregious version of the 2014 Anti-Homosexuality Act, which reinforced existing prison sentences for same-sex conduct and outlawed the “promotion of homosexuality,” but was struck down by a court on procedural grounds.
“One of the most extreme features of this new bill is that it criminalizes people simply for being who they are as well as further infringing on the rights to privacy, and freedoms of expression and association that are already compromised in Uganda,” said Oryem Nyeko, Uganda researcher at Human Rights Watch, “Ugandan politicians should focus on passing laws that protect vulnerable minorities and affirm fundamental rights and stop targeting LGBT people for political capital.”
Like its predecessor, the 2023 Anti-Homosexuality Bill expands on the criminalization of same sex acts, including broad prohibitions on acts such as touching another person “with the intention of committing the act of homosexuality.” People found guilty of the “offense of homosexuality” may be imprisoned for up to 10 years.
But the bill goes much further by also criminalizing any person who “holds out as a lesbian, gay, transgender, a queer, or any other sexual or gender identity that is contrary to the binary categories of male and female,” with a punishment of up to ten years in prison. In addition, the bill makes it a crime to “purport to contract a marriage with another person of the same sex.” The bill includes a punishment of up to five years in prison for the “promotion of homosexuality.” It also effectively declares all same-sex conduct as nonconsensual.
Uganda’s penal code already punishes “carnal knowledge against the order of nature,” which is interpreted to mean homosexual relations, with a punishment of life in prison, although the provision, a colonial remnant, is rarely enforced. In introducing the bill, Basaliriwa said its purpose was to “look at this colonial law and have it in tandem with the current situation.”
The reintroduction of the Anti-Homosexuality Bill follows months of hostile rhetoric against sexual and gender minorities by public figures in Uganda, as well as government crackdowns on LGBT-rights groups and other human rights groups, government critics, and civil society.
On August 3, 2022, Uganda’s National Bureau for Nongovernmental Organizations banned Sexual Minorities Uganda (SMUG), a prominent LGBT rights organization, for not having officially registered with it. The government had previously refused to approve SMUG’s name – a requirement to register as a nongovernmental organization – saying that a group that advocates for the rights and well-being of LGBT people is “undesirable and unregistrable.”
A January 2023 draft report by the bureau identified 26 nongovernmental organizations, including SMUG, that it accused of “promoting homosexuality” and luring schoolchildren into homosexuality through “forced recruitment.” The report recommends barring any groups identified as “promoting LGBTIQ activities” from operating, and suggests that individual activists should be publicly profiled, to prevent them from any further civil society engagement.
On January 25, the parliamentary deputy speaker, Thomas Tayebwa, urged the Internal Affairs Ministryto investigate the activities of the Human Rights Awareness and Promotion Forum (HRAPF), an LGBT and sex-worker-rights group. Tayebwa alleged that HRAPF facilitated the passingof a Kasese district bylaw that recognizes the need to protect key populations including gender and sexual minorities from HIV and tuberculosis, in keeping with Uganda’s own health policies to combat HIV/AIDS.
On February 5, Maj. Gen. Francis Takirwa the deputy commander of land forces in the Ugandan military, used the handover of a renovated community health facility to call for excluding gay peoplefrom receiving health services, saying, “Don’t use our health facilities to treat homosexuals.” On February 24, the state minister for sports, Peter Ogwang, called for the introduction of the death penalty for same-sex conduct.
The introduction of the 2023 Anti-Homosexuality Bill is not the first time Parliament has attempted to recriminalize homosexuality since the 2014 Act was struck down. In 2021, Parliament approved the Sexual Offenses Bill, which criminalized any “sexual act between persons of the same gender,” as well as anal sex between people of any gender, with up to 10 years in prison. On August 3, 2021, President Yoweri Museveni rejected the Sexual Offenses Bill and returned it to Parliament, stating that it covered offenses already provided for in the Penal Code.
The continued criminalization of same sex conduct and crackdowns on sexual minorities in Uganda has had far reaching impacts, Human Rights Watch said. Within five months of the passing of the 2013 Anti-Homosexuality Act LGBT people faced a notable increase in arbitrary arrests, police abuse and extortion, loss of employment, evictions and homelessness, and scores fled the country.
“The Ugandan government’s targeting of a vulnerable minority and distracting attention from a broader clampdown on rights groups is an all too familiar tactic,” said Nyeko, “What the government is attempting should set off alarm bells among civil society groups in Uganda, and in the international community, as it signals increased repression and the stifling of opposition voices and civil society groups across the board.”
Japan’s main opposition party has submitted a bill calling for same-sex marriage to be legalised.
Chinami Nishimura, of the Constitutional Democratic Party (CDP), submitted the bill today (6 March), the South China Morning Post reported.
Japan, which is due to host the G7 summit meeting in May, is the only member of the influential intergovernmental political forum that does not recognise LGBTQ+ marriage.
Nishimura, the acting chief of the CDP, responded: “I think it’s discrimination if marriage is recognised legally for heterosexual couples but not same-sex couples.”
Kishida was also criticised last month after one of his aides reportedly made anti-LGBTQ+ comments, including that he “doesn’t even want to look at” married same-sex couples.
The aide was promptly fired, and Kishida called the remarks “outrageous” and “completely incompatible with the administration’s policies”.
The country’s constitution, which dates back to 1947 and which was written mainly by American officials following the occupation of Japan, states that “marriage shall be only with the mutual consent of both sexes”. However, recent polls have found that a majority of people in Japan support legalising equal marriage.
Currently, same-sex couples can only engage in civil unions – and even then, only in certain regions.
While civil partnerships allow couples to register for local government services, they cannot inherit assets or adopt.
PM Kishida has previously stated that the “issue needs to be carefully considered”.
During her performance at Japan’s Summer Sonic Festival, the singer-songwriter, said: “I’m bisexual, but if I try to have a same-sex marriage here, I can’t.
“It’s not allowed in Japan. Out of the G7 countries, it’s the only one that doesn’t have that protection.”
Sawayama, who came out as bi and pansexual in 2018, added: “This is something really embarrassing. Something that would accept me and my friends, my chosen family, a fair law… if you think we should [have equal marriage], please keep on fighting.
“LGBT people are human beings. LGBT people are Japanese. Love is love. Family is family. Let’s fight together.”
Taiwan is the only Asian country where same-sex marriage is permitted, after a new law was passed in 2019.
Staff at The Trevor Project, one of the largest LGBTQ+ youth advocacy groups in the US, have said that they aren’t being adequately supported with regard to the homophobic and transphobic harassment they face.
Frontline staff, dealing with emotionally draining cases coming through its crisis support hotline, are said to be those suffering the most.
This comes amid a wave of anti-LGBTQ+ moves taken by conservatives in the US, including Don’t Say Gay legislation and various attempts to restrict access to trans healthcare.
A lead crises services digital supervisor at the organisation, Sarah Hallock, told Vice that leadership had “struggled to hear the voices of the people [who] are working on the frontlines and make meaningful changes” amid “a focus on large-scale, rapid growth that has often felt unsustainable”.
Hallock said those providing direct crisis care were regularly forced to deal with prank callers and worse – including people using slurs and threatening violence against the organisation.
This was echoed by Victoria “VT” Tonikian, a goal-setting manager who also co-chairs a transgender affinity group for employees. They said better support for frontline staff was imperative.
Another staff member, Emma Turzillo, wants to see “trauma-informed” policies for those who deal with harassment. She also commented on issues with people in marginalised groups – whether it be race or gender identity – feeling excluded from opportunities within the organisation.
All the comments come as staff at The Trevor Project look to unionise.
Hallock said they hoped to achieve improved support as a result of unionising, highlighting that “people get pretty worn out” helping youth in crisis. “It’s a hard job to do,” she added.
In a statement to Vice News, a spokesperson for The Trevor Project said the organisation respected employees’ rights to form a union and was “open to bargaining”.
Staff manning hotlines for LGBTQ+ youth elsewhere are also facing abuse.
In a tweet, the charity said: “We do not make this decision lightly, but our duty of care towards staff and volunteers necessitates a harm-reduction approach to protect our dedicated staff and volunteer team.”
While LGBTQ+ Americans have been subjected to numerous legislative attacks by Republican politicians recently, being queer is also a challenge in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region, as most countries enact laws and policies that criminalize, stigmatize, and discriminate against queer people.
However, laws and policies are not the only problems, as being anti-LGBTQ+ has become an integral part of the cultural identity of many people in the MENA region. Like the American far-right, hating queer people has become a badge of honor.
Between 2018 and 2019, the Arab Barometer surveyed six MENA countries asking, “Is homosexuality an acceptable practice?” The highest country answering “yes” was Algeria at only 27%, with the rest ranging from 5% to 20%.
The country’s election is only a few days away – and it’s becoming pretty intense.
In recent years, MENA countries have been working on increasing this social discontent against queer people by detaching LGBTQ+ rights from the human rights discourse by framing it as a cultural issue. By doing so, those countries hope to absolve themselves from their human rights obligations towards their queer populations. While human rights are not negotiable, culture is relevant and diverse and must be respected.
The patriarchs of this framing always claim that fundamental human rights are protected for all, saying they do not promote violence or discrimination against LGBTQ+ people; instead, they only safeguard their societies’ cultural values. In this cultural framing, queer identities are labeled as part of a “Western agenda” that corrupts the region’s youth and introduces foreign concepts to MENA societies.
In 2022, this framing and narrative evolved to co-opt decolonization’s terminologies, as LGBTQ+ people are now considered part of a cultural battle between the West and MENA countries, where “the white man” is culturally colonizing the MENA societies with “ideology.”
In 2022, MENA countries banned several movies depicting queer characters, such as Disney’s Lightyear because it had a brief lesbian kiss. Banning LGBTQ+ films is not new for the region, but authorities used to ban movies without much social notice. This time, there was a massive social outcry. Like in other global anti-LGBTQ+ narratives, this outcry focused on protecting children from the corrupt queer ideology, as Disney’s movies are mainly viewed by children. Other countries like Saudi Arabia also banned “rainbow toys,” fearing it would influence the children to be LGBTQ+.
The uproar around Lightyear resulted in “Fetrah,” an anti-LGBTQ+ social media campaign that originated in Egypt to defend Middle Eastern culture and tradition from Western invasion. Before being banned on Facebook for promoting hate speech, the movement gained millions of followers across the MENA region. The campaign still operates on other social media platforms, and its ideology is prevalent among the people. The social pressure forced Disney to issue a statement vowing not to show any LGBTQ+ content in MENA countries.
Later, several countries issued policies to combat “Western LGBTQ+ ideology” in schools.
In Egypt, the Ministry of Education issued a general directive to “combat the promotion of homosexuality and its ideas in different media outlets,” instructing officials to implement anti-LGBTQ+ awareness campaigns in schools to protect the children and youth from this Western agenda. In the United Arab Emirates (UAE), the Ministry of Education issued a new code of conduct prohibiting “discussing gender identity, homosexuality or any other behavior deemed unacceptable to UAE society.” In Morocco, the Ministry of Education investigated and issued disciplinary actions against officials after the word “sexual orientation” appeared in textbooks.
In Lebanon, where an economic and political crisis is ongoing, “Soldiers of God,” a right-wing Christian group, destroyed a rainbow billboard and vowed to attack any queer persons they could identify. The Lebanese authorities decided to ban all events promoting “LGBTQ+ ideology”, siding with the aggressors. In Iraq, another country with an ongoing crisis, several MPs and political leaders tried to distract the public by introducing new laws that criminalize homosexuality. Those attempts are happening both on the federal level and in the autonomous region of Kurdistan.
The region’s anti-LGBTQ+ actors benefited greatly from the ill-informed discussion around LGBTQ+ people at the event, as the conversation was characterized by Western-centric performative activism and unprofessional and sometimes outright racist coverage by Western media. This discussion enforced the ongoing narrative that queer rights are a cultural ideology the West is trying to force on MENA countries, which harms the region’s LGBTQ+ people the most.
Not even a month into 2023, several anti-LGBTQ+ incidents have already occured. In Algeria, the Ministry of Commerce announced it would ban all rainbow-colored products to “protect society from homosexuality.” In Lebanon, despite removing the ban on queer events, news emerged of rogue members of the security agencies extorting LGBTQ+ people, hunting them online and offline, and requesting a bribe or else they would arrest them.
Anti-LGBTQ+ sentiments will likely continue to rise in the region, with anti-queer figures dominating public speech and mobilizing the cultural framing of LGBTQ+ issues in their favor.
Anti-LGBTQ+ actors seem to have been successful in their goals for now, as LGBTQ+ identities are viewed by a large portion of the MENA societies as an evil corrupt Western ideology. The region’s anti-LGBTQ+ actors are an active part of the global anti-LGBTQ+ rights movement, as seen in the similarities in their discourse. Both capitalize on conspiracy theories feeding into a public moral panic that there is an LGBTQ+ cult attempting to recruit children into their ideology.
What LGBTQ+ people in the region need is a mix of reformed strategies and increased support to assist them with combating the ever-increasing anti-LGBTQ+ sentiments in their countries. That’s what American LGBTQ+ people need too.
Police in California announced they have arrested a university janitor in the murder of a local drag queen, barber, and member of the Oakland Gay Men’s Chorus.
Curtis Marsh, 53, was found stabbed to death in his burning Oakland apartment near Lake Merritt on Saturday, March 4. Marsh was a popular member of the Oakland Gay Men’s Chorus who also performed as a drag queen under the stage name Touri Monroe.
On Friday, Oakland Police Department (OPD) announced the arrest of Sweven Waterman, 38, and the Alameda District Attorney later charged him with Marsh’s murder. Waterman had worked as a senior custodian with the University of California Berkeley’s Housing & Dining Services since August 2022.
According to court documents, police responded to a report of smoke and a man screaming for help coming from Marsh’s apartment shortly after 8 a.m. on Saturday, March 4. The Oakland Fire Department was already on the scene and dealing with multiple fires inside the apartment when police arrived. Marsh was found nonresponsive and suffering from multiple stab wounds and trauma. He was pronounced dead at the scene by police.
“I heard screams, ‘help, help.’ I got up,” a neighbor who requested anonymity told local tv station KTVU. “My neighbor on the 4th floor was screaming and hollering that Curtis was dead. I was able to view his body. He was laying on his balcony bloodied.”
Investigators quickly identified Waterman as a suspect using surveillance video, electronic data, and witness statements. With the assistance of the University of California Police Department, officers from OPD arrested Waterman last Thursday afternoon at a UC Berkeley residence hall.
Marsh was described by friends as loving, gifted, and gracious.
“He was very sweet, very funny,” Steven Smith, who sang with Marsh in Oakland Gay Men’s Chorus, told KTVU. “He was an accomplished musician. Beautiful, beautiful voice.”
TRANSLIFE needs volunteers for their April 29 conference. Allies are welcome and encouraged to volunteer, folks should have a general understanding of what it means to be affirming to the trans community. We have two shifts: 9:00 am-1:00 pm and 1:00 pm-5:00 pm. You are also welcome to volunteer for the whole day. There are two types of volunteers, general volunteers and safety volunteers. General volunteers do various tasks which can include things like registration, welcomers, hall monitors, food set up and break down, room clean up, and assisting committee members, staff, and facilitators. Safety volunteers will work the parameters, engage in bag checks, and communicate with staff and committee. The conference is at Finley Center in Santa Rosa.
Please consider supporting the transgender community during this important event. If you are part of an organization please check in with others and spread the word. The trans community is facing an onslaught of discrimination at all levels and we need to ban together to encourage resiliency in our community.
To volunteer or for more information, email TRANSLIFE at [email protected]
The UK government is facing fierce condemnation from opposition MPs and senior Tories over its “immoral, ineffective and incredibly expensive” Illegal Migration Bill.
The bill has been devised by the Tory government to reduce or stop “small boat crossings”across the English Channel.
If it becomes law, all adults who arrive in the UK via the Channel or in the back of a lorry will be detained for 28 days. They would then be sent back to their country of origin or on to a third country like Rwanda. Families with children could also be detained and deported.
Opposition MPs, human rights advocates, religious leaders and even Tory MPs have condemned the measure, which could jeopardise vulnerable people’s lives.
Labour MP Diane Abbott told PinkNews that the Illegal Migration Bill is “disgraceful”.
“It probably breaks international law, which is even admitted by ministers on the face of the bill,” the veteran MP said.
“It would deprive vulnerable asylum seekers their rights under international law, fail victims of modern slavery and leave unaccompanied children in detention centres.”
She added: “It is completely unworkable as well as immoral. The government probably knows that. But this is not about solving the issue of thousands of people endangering their lives by cross the Channel in small boats. It is aimed at bolstering a Tory core vote strategy for the next election.”
Illegal Migration Bill could condemn LGBTQ+ refugees to death
Liberal Democrats MP Layla Moran told PinkNews that the UK has “a proud history of offering sanctuary to those in need of international protection” – but the government is now intent on “trashing that legacy”.
“People fleeing war or persecution should be treated with compassion, not as criminals,” she said.
“I am deeply concerned about what this means for the safety of LGBTQ+ people seeking sanctuary in the UK. What may be a so-called safe country for some often is not for minority groups. Being sent back may be a matter of life or death for simply being who they are.”
Moran added: “Just like their botched Rwanda plan, this new legislation is immoral, ineffective and incredibly expensive for the taxpayer.
“It does nothing to punish the evil gangs who are responsible for these dangerous crossings, and instead criminalises their victims. This is not a practical or sustainable solution, it’s another vanity project for this Conservative government.”
Labour’s Bell Ribeiro-Addy said those who have escaped “horrifying situations” shouldn’t have to risk their lives to get to the UK.
“Instead of putting down immoral and ineffective legislation that will further criminalise and punish some of the most vulnerable for taking the only option left to them, the government should be opening viable safe routes and giving people a genuine chance to rebuild their lives as part of our communities.”
Scottish Greens MSP Maggie Chapman described the bill as “indefensible” in a press release.
“It would punish some of the world’s most vulnerable people as part of a desperate and racist culture war that has been fuelled from Downing Street,” she said.
“Locking up refugees and asylum seekers in prison-like conditions and then deporting them to Rwanda is the sort of policy you would expect from the BNP, but now it is being promoted by some of the most senior politicians in Westminster.
“It is utterly shameful. The Tories are going against every principle of how to treat refugees, and are using the kind of vile rhetoric that would have been at home in the fascist regimes of the 1930s.”
Senior Tories to rebel on immigration bill
The government is also facing opposition from within its own ranks. Tory MP Caroline Nokes told Times Radio that she will vote against the bill.
“I might be an outlier in my party but I think we have an absolute duty to treat people humanely to keep people safe. I have absolute horror at the prospect,” she said.
Nokes continued: “I am deeply troubled at the prospect of a policy which seeks to criminalise children, pregnant women, families and remove them to Rwanda.
“I didn’t vote for the last Nationality and Borders Bill, this hasn’t achieved its aim in reducing crossings. In fact, we’ve seen them increase, and I fail to see what this legislation is going to do to act as a deterrent”.
Tory MP Chris Skidmore joined Nokes, saying he too will vote against the bill.
“I am not prepared to break international law or the human rights conventions that the UK has had a proud history of playing a leading role in establishing,” he tweeted.
“I will not be voting for the bill tonight.”
Opposition to the bill has grown steadily since Sunak first announced his government’s plans while standing at a podium bearing the slogan “Stop the Boats”.
The government’s bill has already been lambasted by Amnesty International UK and by Human Rights Watch, along with a number of other human rights groups.
It will receive its second reading on Monday evening (13 March).
In 1982, David Holladay was 16 years old and about to come out to his mother. They lived in a small town in Oklahoma and attended a Baptist church. This was the era of Rock Hudson and Elton John and Billie Jean King, people whose names, he said, “were never far away from something derogatory.”
When Holladay considered his future as a gay person, he saw it only as “the fog of the unknown.”
What Holladay didn’t know then was that a movement was brewing that he and his family would be a part of for decades to come. He hadn’t yet heard of PFLAG, the first LGBTQ ally organization for queer people and their families. But Holladay would eventually realize that by coming out, he wasn’t only doing something for himself but also for his parents: He was giving them an opportunity to stand beside him.
“They realized this isn’t about people demanding a huge spotlight or attention,” he said of his parents’ first introduction to the gay rights movement. “These are just human beings trying to make their way in the world, and one of them’s my kid.”
The parents of gays and lesbians were just beginning to gain visibility in the 1980s. They were slowly building a coalition that started with one mom in the early ‘70s: Jeanne Manford, an elementary school teacher from Queens, New York, who walked alongside her gay son, Morty, during the 1972 Christopher Street Liberation Day march (the precursor to New York City’s massive LGBTQ Pride March). Her sign was a call to action for others like her. It said: “Parents of Gays: Unite in Support for Our Children.” Manfordis known as the first parent to walk in a pride march.
As Manford and her son walked, people whistled and clapped. She initially thought they were cheering for the guy behind her, but she soon learned otherwise. “They screamed! They yelled! They ran over and kissed me. ‘Would you talk to my mother?’ ‘Wow, if my mother saw me here.’ … They just couldn’t believe that a parent would do that,” Manford recalled in an interview years later.
The experience changed both Manford’s life and the course of allyship in America. The next spring, in March 1973, Jeanne and Morty Manford co-founded what was initially called Parents of Gays, or POG, in a church in New York’s Greenwich Village neighborhood. About 20 people attended.
POG would eventually become Parents, Families and Friends of Lesbians and Gays, and then, in 2014, it would become simply PFLAG. Now, 50 years after its founding, PFLAG has more than 400 chapters across the country and more than 200,000 members.
The organization celebrated its semicentennial at a gala in New York City this month. In attendance was Suzanne Manford Swan, daughter of Jeanne and sister of Morty. (Jeanne died in 2013 and Morty in 1992.)
“For 50 years, people have walked into PFLAG meetings worried about their loved ones. There, they learn that the people they love are still the same people they always knew and loved,” Swan said in prepared remarks, calling the organization “a beacon of hope, love and acceptance for millions of people around the world.” She also called on members to “recommit ourselves to the work that still lies ahead.”
The work is especially crucial for lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and queer young people who do not have parents to advocate on their behalf. Many LGBTQ people still fear that they will be rejected by their parents, and queer youths are overrepresented among young people experiencing homelessness. And while these youths have higher rates of suicide than their non-LGBTQ peers, a surveypublished by The Trevor Project in 2019 found that LGBTQ youths who had at least one accepting adult in their lives were 40% less likely to have attempted suicide in the preceding year.
Jeanne’s activism was spurred two months before she walked in the parade. Morty had been protesting a meeting of a homophobic parody group, and he was beaten by a firefighter who threw him down an escalator. When the police called Jeanne to tell her Morty had been arrested, the officer added, “And you know he’s a homosexual?” This question was meant to humiliate Morty and alienate him from his mother.
“Yes, I know,” Jeanne said. “Why are you bothering him?”
Morty was hospitalized for several days. Two months later, he asked his mother to march with him, and Jeanne responded that she’d march if she could carry a sign. Reflecting on her activism years later, Jeanne said she was driven to do something because, “I’ve always felt that Morty was a very special person. And I wasn’t going to let anybody walk over him.”
A parent’s call to action
If coming out is an invitation for activism, David Holladay’s parents were there to answer the call.
“Fortunately for me, when David came out I was in a large law firm in Oklahoma CIty. I was a partner in that law firm, so I didn’t have to be silent if I chose not to,” Don Holladay, David’s father, said.
But there wasn’t a clear path to how to proceed. “It was a fairly lonely landscape,” Don said. “Our biggest ally was the library.” They would find out about PFLAG from a Dear Abby column.
The Holladays formed a local PFLAG chapter in Norman, Oklahoma, in 1994. David’s mother, Kay, went back to school for a master’s degree in public education, ran for the city council and became a PFLAG board member. Don has gone on to advocate on behalf of LGBTQ people in his state and was the lead attorney in the fight to legalize same-sex marriage in Oklahoma.
“You cannot love someone the way you love your children and listen to rock throwers who aren’t throwing at you, but they’re throwing at your child, and not do anything about it. That just doesn’t make sense,” Don said.
When Kay heads to pride marches, she always makes sure to bring her sign, a fitting evolution of the one Jeanne Manford proudly carried: “I love my gay son,” it says, “…and his husband.”