...in November of 1971, the federal personnel office wrote this letter to Frank Kameny, the pioneering gay-rights activist (still going strong, btw), in response to Kameny's protest of the firing of a gay federal employee named Donald Preston Rau:
The activities of sodomy, fellatio, anal intercourse, mutual masturbation, and homosexual caressing and rubbing of bodies together to obtain sexual excitement or climax are considered to be acts of sexual perversions and to be acts of immoral conduct, which, under present mores of our society, are regarded as scandalous, disgraceful, and abhorrent to the overwhelming majority of people. ...
Individuals who engage in acts of sex perversion and other homosexual acts...are not regarded with respect by the overwhelming majority of people. Indeed, some of the most extreme epithets of contempt and vituperation are popularly applied to persons who engage in such activities...
The letter goes on, and on, in that vein (the first page is here).
And today? On April 3, 2009 (the same day, as it happens, when Iowa's Supreme Court ruled for gay marriage), John Berry, an openly gay man, was confirmed to head that same federal personnel office. And the 1971 letter to Kameny is, literally, a museum piece: it's in the Library of Congress, along with the rest of Kameny's papers. No comment I could make could say more than that.
(Hat tip to Charles Francis of the Kameny Papers project.)
It gets better: Via email, Frank Kameny explains that this case was part of litigation which, in 1973, produced a court order that led to the lifting of the federal gay-employment ban in 1975. He says he was told by a government official, "'The government has decided to change its policies to suit you,' which I have always cherished."
Frank continues:
In the 1960s [John W.] Macy's CSC [the Civil Service Commision, antecedent of today's Office of Personnel Management] would not even meet with us, to discuss these issues, until we picketed them on June 25, 1965. But they remained adamant, as the Library of Congress letters show.
I had thought that the issue of gays in government was long nicely settled and behind us. But now - to have an openly gay man appointed as the successor, several steps removed, to Macy and Hampton [Macy's successor]!!! They must be turning over in their graves. And I feel truly vindicated beyond anything I might ever have expected or imagined. It's like the perfect, contrived happy ending to a fictional fairy tale. It's too perfect to be true in reality. But there it is.
No, wait, it gets even better:
Berry has personally invited me to be present at his swearing-in.
Words fail, except to say: Thank you, Frank.
12 Comments for “Not Even 40 Years Ago…”
posted by Rob on
I hope the old fart that composed this letter is still alive in a low class retirment home, under abusive care.
posted by Staci on
As a gay federal employee, I sincerely hope that I can carry my “unauthorized” spouse on my health insurance in the near future.
posted by Jody O\'Connell on
I am proud to say that I am old enough not only to remember Frank Kameny but to have met him. He is a great personal hero of mine. It is safe to say that without him we would not be where we are today. Thank you, Frank Kameny.
posted by Steve D. on
John Will retired from the Department of Commerce in 1974. I believe he died in California in 1998.
posted by Mike on
As a straight, married, Christian man, I say, “Thank God for Frank Kameny.” Now if we can just get federal recognition of marriage rights, we’re on our way to becoming truly civilized.
posted by Tim Cravens on
This post brought tears to my eyes — I was only 5 in 1971 — and I am so grateful to the lesbians and gay men who were active before I was born and when I was a small child to pave the way for my generation of gay people to have a better life — and I hope my generation can do half as much as Frank Kameny did to pave the way for lgbt folk in future generations to be free and equal.
posted by Paul Halsall on
Frank Kameny is one of the most annoying gay men who ever lived. Any one who has met him will confirm this.
Thank God for Frank.
posted by Dan Borroff on
Tim;
Thanks for your accolade to those of us who were involved before you were born. I was involved when you were 3. I was only 20. We faced down a Mafia contract and a threat by the Vice Squad to arrest 3,000 people at a dance. The next year we were asked to create an action at the American Psychiatric Association Convention. Our inside action caused much frank and passionate discussion. It led to the appointment of a two-year long task force that recommended that homosexuality be removed from the DSM.
I’ve never been as frightened as I was at each of these junctures. All we wanted was for LGBT people to be able to socialize, dance, and be regarded as valued members of society. The Chicago Mafia, the Chicago Vice Squad, and the APA members who convened in Chicago did not agree. The vast majority of heterosexual American people were totally unaware that we existed and blended in among them every day.
Frank Kameny did much to advance the dignity of all people by holding to beliefs that annoyed, and transformed, our world.
posted by TomJinBA on
I was a college freshman in 1971 and came out in ’72. Campus “gay lib” organizations were a new thing at the time, but we quickly became aware that we were not inventing the wheel, but inheriting the momentum created by the likes of Frank Kameny, Del Martin & Phyllis Lyon et al. I truly hope this history is not forgotten. I’m “only” in my mid-50s and it still amazes me that in my lifetime to date, I’ve seen people thrown into jail, their lives ruined, for being gay. And now I will see gay folks getting married in Iowa. Thank you Frank!
posted by Wayne Dynes on
In a 2006 interview, Kameny said of his struggle with opponents: ?I’m right and they’re wrong — that’s been my underlying premise my whole life. Over the years and the issues I’ve taken on, I have not sought to adjust myself to society. I have adjusted society to me and society is much better off for the adjustments I’ve administered.?
Some would say that such a remark indicates folie de grandeur. At all events a veritable cult of Frank Kameny has grown up in the Nation?s Capital. This is skewed for two reasons. First, historians of the gay movement have shown that this work was the accomplishment of many individuals. Secondly, for a long time Washington, D.C. was a sideshow. The gay movement began in Southern California, spread to Northern California, New York City, and Boston–to name the most prominent centers. As a bit player in those early days, I can say that we were not primarily concerned with adjusting to Frank Kameny.
Let us honor those who deserve to be honored. But no cults, please.
posted by Dave on
Frank Kameny provided me with long-distance comfort and advice when I was fighting, as a gay man, for my discharge from the USN in 1977. We never met but I’ll never forget Mr. Kameny’s assistance! BTW, the Navy granted me a full honorable discharge.
posted by Charles Francis on
I would like to personally invite Wayne Dynes to visit the Manuscript Reading room of the Madison building of the Library of Congress. There he can spend a few hours (or weeks) studying the record, the actual papers of Kameny, more than 50,000 items. The Library of Congress is not a temple; Kameny is not a “cult”. The historic record speaks for itself.
Charles Francis