Del Martin died at the age of 87
she was one of the first true gay rights activists and she founded the Daughters of Bilitis

sad day for activists...
a very sad day

That is definitely sad. We should all remember how she fought for gay rights and be thankful for her accomplishments. We must fight on in her memory and continue the fight.

By the way, I moved this thread, because I thought it was more appropriate for The Lounge.

Oh my gosh! I hadn't heard about this at all

This is very sad

Truly a sad day for the GBLT movement. In fact, you could argue that the modern fight for gay right egan when Del and Phyllis teamed up with Harry Hay to work together for "homophile rights" back in the 1950s.

One poignant note: all the obituaries said: "Her wife Phyllis Lyon was at her bedside as she passed away" or words to that effect. They were a married couple for 55 years, legally recognized as one for less than one -- but that's a cosmic change from the past.

It's sad that she's dead, but at least she saw the huge progress made and even lived long enough to benefit from the possibility of gay marriage. However, I think that the above quote is rather innaccurate. It is also very USA-centric. Here is a timeline:-

1946 — "COC" (Dutch acronym for "Center for Culture and Recreation"), one of the earliest homophile organizations, is founded in the Netherlands. It is the oldest surviving LGBT organization.

1950 — The Swedish Federation for Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender Rights (RFSL) is formed in Sweden.

1950 - The Mattachine Society, the first American homosexual group, is founded in Los Angeles.

1955 — Daughters of Bilitis founded in San Francisco, California.

1958 — The Homosexual Law Reform Society is founded in the United Kingdom.

From the above we can see that while she no doubt contributed a lot to the fight for GBLT rights in the USA, the fight BEGAN in the USA before she founded the Daughters of Bilitis and teamed up with Harry Hay, and that it began in the Netherlands and Sweden even before that.

The beginning of the fight for GBLT rights in the USA was part a general movement in Western society in the 1940s and 1950s. Also, even though The Homosexual Law Reform Society was founded in the UK after she teamed up with Harry Hay, it would have been founded here even if she'd never existed.

So, yes, she contributed a lot to GBLT rights in the USA and it's sad that she's dead, but it seems to me an exaggeration (and very US-centric) to say that "the modern fight for gay right egan when Del and Phyllis teamed up with Harry Hay to work together for "homophile rights" back in the 1950s."

Kit

This is subject that everybody will have their own views.

For me 6 am 4th July 1967 Leo Abse Sexual Offences Act, was the beginning, if a very limited beginning (decimalisation of homosexuals). It certainly was the most monumental event in my life. However, Leo Abse, had been campaigning since before 1961, and probably before then. George Thomas


I certainly do not agree with all of Leo Abse views and actions, but he is certainly the most influential and the real creator of our community, on this island.

This is surely sad news that most won't hear about.