The contributions of Gays and Lesbians are often overlooked by traditional historians or "sanitized" by a heterosexist educational system that detaches the public identity of a famous person from his or her personal life and sexuality. To counter conservative efforts at revising history, queer people and their allies should do all they can to learn about queer contributions to human civilization throughout history and perpetuate the cycle of education by working to share this WHOLE history with others.

For starters, I've done a little quick research and found a nifty list of important dates in queer history. Some day, will the world remember YOUR contributions to human civilization? And if they do, will they remember you as queer or straight?

3 Jan 1948 - Kinsey releases his groundbreaking yet controversial report on American male sexuality

11 Nov 1950 - In L.A. the Mattachine Society is formed

15 Oct 1952 - The Mattachine Society establishes the first foundation dedicated to gay education and research

21 Sep 1955 - The Daughters of Bilitis, the first lesbian society is formed

3 Jan 1962 - The State of Illinois decriminalizes sex acts between consenting adult males

7 Apr 1966 - San Francisco becomes home to the first gay community center in the US

24 Nov 1967 - The Oscar Wilde Memorial Bookshop opens in N.Y.C.

6 Oct 1968 - The Metropolitan Community Church is founded

28 Jun 1969 - The Stonewall uprising in New York's Greenwich Village neighborhood, called "the hairpin-drop heard around the world," marks the beginning of the modern Gay and Lesbian civil rights movement

2 Jul 1969 - Christopher St. in N.Y.C. witnesses the first gay pride demonstration in the U.S.

6 Mar 1972 - The American Bar Association recommends the repeal of sodomy laws

16 Oct 1973 - The National Gay and Lesbian Task Force is formed

15 Dec 1973 - The A.P.A. removes homosexuality from its list of mental disorders

10 Feb 1976 - Doonesbury becomes home of the first gay comic-strip character

9 Feb 1977 - S.F. hosts the first Gay and Lesbian Film Festival

26 Jun 1977 - The nation witnesses the first of many Gay and Lesbian Pride Parades

25 Jun 1978 - The Pride Flag is first unveiled at the N.Y.C. Pride Parade

14 Oct 1979 - 100,000 people attend the first march on Washington for gay and lesbian equality

25 Feb 1982 - Wisconsin approves the nation's first Gay civil rights law

28 Aug 1982 - The first Gay Games are attended by 50,000 people

1 Apr 1985 - The nation's first gay high school, named after Harvey Milk, opens in S.F.

17 Nov 1985 - The Gay and Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation is formed

21 Nov 1985 - Artist Cleve Jones and friends start work on the NAMES Project Quilt

11 Oct 1988 - The first National Coming Out Day

3 Jun 1989 - The Postal Service issues the first Gay and Lesbian stamps

17 Oct 1992 - The NAMES Project quilt is displayed with 20,000 panels to 400,000 people on 13 acres

1 Jan 1993 - The World Health Organization removes homosexuality from its list of diseases

25 Apr 1993 - Over 1 million people attend the third march on Washington for Gay and Lesbian rights

6 Dec 1994 - The American Medical Association removes homosexuality from it's list of disorders

13 Jun 1995 - The first White House Liaison to the Gay and Lesbian Community is appointed

12 Oct 1996 - 1.2 million people visit the NAMES Project quilt on the mall

26 Mar 1997 - The first official meeting about Gay rights takes place in the White House

30 Apr 1997 - Ellen comes out to 42 million people on prime-time television

1 Aug 1998 - 200,000 spectators and 15,000 athletes attend the Gay Games in Amsterdam

What's next in Queer History??

See an error? Want more information? Nifty trivia, important landmarks or queer history to add?