This Day in Queer History

On this day in 1904, Marty Mann was born. A founding female member of Alcoholics Anonymous and one of its first lesbian members, she spent 40 years with partner Priscilla Peck while transforming how America understood addiction.

On this day, Michel Foucault was born. The philosopher who reshaped how the world thinks about power and sexuality became the first public figure in France to die of AIDS.

On this day in 1937, Clark Philip Polak was born. The outspoken Philadelphia activist created DRUM magazine in 1964, arguing boldly for sexual liberation at a time when most gay organizations avoided the topic entirely.

On this day in 1952, W. Dorr Legg and six friends from the Mattachine Society met in Los Angeles to plan a journal for gay education and research. The result was ONE, Inc., a pioneering LGBTQ+ publication.

On this day in 1964, legendary gay composer Cole Porter died at 75. Behind timeless songs and a glamorous public life, his wife Linda knew and embraced his truth from the very start.

On this day, Edna Knowles and Peaches Stevens married at a Chicago South Side lounge. Jet Magazine profiled the wedding, and Illinois confirmed no state law banned or sanctioned such marriages.

On this day, Dr. Howard Brown announced the founding of the National Gay Task Force in New York City. It became the first LGBTQ+ rights organization with a truly national scope, led by Dr. Bruce Voeller as its first executive director.

On this day in 1973, the Australian and New Zealand College of Psychiatry became the first professional body in the world to declare homosexuality not an illness, two months before the American Psychiatric Association followed suit.

On this day in 1977, Alexandria, Virginia passed a gay rights ordinance, adding another Southern city to the growing list of places choosing protection over prejudice.

On this day in 1977, the Santa Barbara board of education voted to ban discrimination against gay and lesbian students, becoming the first U.S. school board to do so.