This Day In Gay Utah History November 2nd

November 2

1901 “Crime Against Nature” John Show,  a married man and ex ex-soldier living at  114  East Second  South street, is behind the bars of the  county Jail charged with a “Crime Against Nature”  alleged to  have been committed upon Frederick Krogh a 10 year old lad living at the  same place.  Show was arrested last night by Sheriff Naylor and Deputy Raleigh upon  warrant issued from Judge Kroeger’s court. The complaint was made by Mandus Krogh the brother of the victim of the crime. The Salt Lake herald. (Salt Lake City [Utah) 

1912 Observations about “Sexual Inversion in Women”: 1912. The journal Lancet-Clinic published an article by Dr. Douglas C. McMurtrie which tries to explain lesbianism, or as he put it, “sexual inversion in women.” McMurtrie set the stage for his discussion by observing that most physicians may know little to nothing about sexual inversion in general: Cases of abnormal sexual development are liable to come under the observation of the psychologist as frequently if not more frequently than under the notice of the physician. That this is true is due to the fact that very few such cases are ever brought to the physician in a professional capacity. The subjects tend to conceal the fact of their condition, and are inclined to work out their own salvation. Only when their course conflicts violently with the interests of the community is the medical man called upon to diagnose and prescribe. The great majority of the sexually abnormal live their lives without ever coming in contact with the medical profession, at least in so far as their physical characteristics are concerned. And given the relative rarity of physicians’ experience with homosexuality, McMurtrie wrote that the medical profession’s exposure to lesbianism was rarer still: Perhaps one of the least known phases of sexual abnormality is that of homosexuality in women. There have been many studies of inversion, but practically all devote but little attention to female manifestations. …One reason for the lack of data on the subject is undoubtedly the difficulty of recognizing sexual inversion in women, due to the customs of the day which permit and even call for caresses and outward demonstrations between members of the female sex. In addition women are very generally ignorant of the details of sexual character and, not recognizing themselves the character of their tendencies, there would be greater difficulty for others to secure definite information. What followed then were descriptions of ten case descriptions, three of them men who were included as “of immediate interest to the subject” of homosexuality generally. Of the five women, three were prostitutes and one was an actress. Two more had scant details of only a sentence or two. One had a longstanding relationship with another women who cheated on her, plunging her into depression. When , after two years, her lover returned, all was well. This woman, identified only as “G,” seemed to have a particular self-assurance about her sexuality, which McMurtrie obviously regarded with some surprise: G. has only cared for this one woman. She describes this passion, however, as the most intense possible in life and the companionship of the loved one as the greatest happiness. She can see nothing wrong in such relationships except promiscuity, and regards the bond as being as holy as the conventional marriage vow. To this very unusual history I have only to add that the woman in question is highly regarded by all who know her, and not even her relatives and closest friends have the slightest idea of her sexual characteristics. John Burrow Douglas C McMurtrie, "Some observations on the psychology of sexual inversion in women." Lancet-Clinic 108, no. 18 (November 2, 1912): 487-490.] Report

1955 “Boise Underworld” Anti-Gay Witchhunt Begins: 1955. Terrible crimes were being committed in Boise, Idaho. Vernon Cassel, Ralph Cooper and Charles Brokaw were arrested and confessed to their crimes: sex acts with at least ten local underage teenagers. Cooper, 33, had an arrest record that went back twenty years. He was quickly sentenced to life in the state pen, without the benefit of a lawyer. Ada county probation officer Emery Bess told the local newspaper to say that the investigation had only “scratched the surface” of a larger ring of several adults allegedly molesting hundreds of teens. Boise was a rather quiet town of 50,000, the kind of place in which everyone knew just about everyone else. News of the arrests sent shock waves through the city. The next day, an editorial in the normally mild-mannered Idaho Evening Statesman quickly amped the level of panic: “Crush the Monster” “Disclosure that the evils of moral perversion prevail in Boise on an extensive scale must come as a distinct and intensely disagreeable shock to most Boiseans. It seems almost incredible that any such cancerous growth could have taken roots and developed in our midst. … the situation is one that causes general alarm and calls for immediate and systematic cauterization. …Until the whole sordid situation is completely cleared up, and the premises thoroughly cleaned and disinfected, the job is one in which the full strength of county and city agencies should and must be enlisted. That’s what we demand: and that’s what we expect.” Three more arrests followed two weeks later: a respected lawyer, a teacher, the vice president of the city’s largest bank. With the second round of arrests, the Statesman followed with another alarmist editorial: “This Mess Must Be Removed” The decent foundations of the Boise community were jolted beyond description recently with the arrest of three local men on morals charges involving young boys. It did not seem possible that this community ever harbored homosexuals to ravage our youth. Yet it was true as confessions of both men and young boys made disgustingly clear. …It might not be a bad idea for Boise parents to keep an eye on the whereaboutsof their offspring. To date a number of boys have been victimized by these perverts. The greatest tragedy of all is that fact that young boys so involved grow into manhood with the same inclinations of those who are called homosexuals. No matter what is required, this sordid mess must be removed from this community.” Parents did respond, by calling the police and high school officials with names of men they found suspicious: the man who paused to look at a football practice, men who were involved with youth groups, single men with no girlfriends. Calls overwhelmed the switchboards for the police, sheriff’s office, prosecuting attorney’s office, and the Statesman. Those calls led to more arrests. On December 12, Time magazine took the panic nationwide. In a story titled “Idaho Underworld,” Time wrote that the city “had sheltered a widespread homosexual underworld that involved some of Boise’s most prominent men and had preyed on hundreds of teen-age boys for the past decade.” On December 22, the city council hired William Fairchild, who had previously worked at the State Department rooting out gay people as part of Sen. Joseph McCarthy’s “lavender scare” a few years earlier, to head up Boise’s witchhunt. Fairfchild quickly expanded the investigation with a list of five hundred suspected gay men. More arrests followed, and with each arrest came more names and more arrests. The terror among gay men led many of them to abruptly pack up and leaving town. (In one famous example, a teacher left so quickly upon reading the news that he left his half-eaten eggs on the breakfast table.) And by now, there was little concern whether the crimes were with teens or between consenting adults. In the end, only sixteen were arrested and charged, and only four of them were charged with crimes against minors. The others were charged with “infamous crimes against nature” with other consenting adults. As for the minors themselves, most of them ranged from high school age up to twenty-one years old. Court testimony revealed that they were gang members, either hustling, robbing, or blackmailing their sexual targets. This gave rise to numerous proposals for social programs to rehabilitate the youths and provide them with more respectable means of earning money. But the sentiment was very different for the men who were caught up in the

witch hunt. For them, the cry was the lock them up and throw away the key. Meanwhile, accusations and counter-accusations mounted, and took on political undertones, with the Statesman entering a running battle with the reform-minded mayor and specific members of the City Council. But by mid-1956, the investigation wound down, partly because of a lack of evidence to support some of the wild accusations, partly because of credibility problems with some of the gang members whose testimony was critical, partly because the national attention paid to Boise was becoming an embarrassment, and partly because Boiseans themselves began to feel that the investigations were going too far. In the end, 1,472 people had been interviewed, countless lives were ruined, and a generally threatening cloud hung over Boise. That cloud would not go away for many more years to come. When CBS broadcast its 1967 hit piece, The Homosexuals on Mar 7, Boise was singled out for “illustrat(ing) the fact that homosexuality cannot be stamped out; that it is everywhere, not just in the big cities.” [Sources: John Gerassi. The Boys of Boise: Furor, Vice and Folly in an American City 2001 edition (Seattle: University of Washington Press, 2001). "Idaho Underworld." Time (December 12, 1955). Available online to Time subscribers here.] Author Today In History Jim Burroway Idaho's 1st Sex Scandal

1969-A nationwide poll of US doctors revealed 67% are in favor of the repeal of sodomy laws.

Joe Redburn

1976- Gay activist, radio talk show host, and bar owner Joe Redburn lost to Republican

Genevieve Atwood

incumbent Genevieve Atwood in a race for a Utah legislature house seat.  Salt Lake Tribune, Nov 4th, 1976, p. B2 : “I ran for the legislature in 1976 in the Avenues, but I lost two to one to Genevieve Atwood. And then the Republican right wing got rid of her because she was too liberal. But now the avenues are like Democrats. Salt Lake has become so Democrat, it’s amazing. I only ran for the legislature once, but it was quite an experience. Everybody ought to do it once. “ Joe Redburn to Joselle Vanderhoof 2008

Greg Harden

Curtis Jensen, Dave Waters

1987- KRCL Concerning Gays and Lesbians featured Gay activists who raised funds for political causes most noticeably the Desert and Mountain States Conference  by doing drag as The Lovebirds, a tribute to the Sixties girl groups. Curtis Jensen, Greg Harden, and David Waters founding members.

1989 Gay and Lesbian Community Council of Utah met at the Resurrection Metropolitan Church. Changes to the by-laws to elected officers in December instead of January passed. Ben Barr was thanked for donating a computer to GLCCU and Beau Chaine was thanked in recognition of his service to the Gay Help Line.

David Sharpton

1989- About 125 people attended an AIDS awareness seminar at St. Benedict's Hospital.  In a related article  by the Deseret News called “AIDS SUFFERERS COME FROM ALL WALKS OF LIFE BUT SHARE A COMMON BOND” David Sharpton, executive director of the Utah chapter of People With AIDS Coalition,  stated that he has no qualms about using his name but knows there are many fellow sufferers in Utah who fear public humiliation. Sharpton said they are discriminated against in their jobs and sometimes even shunned by their families. Sharpton formed the Utah chapter of People With AIDS with six people in his living room 18 months ago. The organization now has 176 members.  Sally Scofield, a McKay-Dee Hospital social worker, said that in 1986 she was unable to find a nursing home from Brigham City to Salt Lake City that was willing to take an AIDS patient.

1990-Friday- LGSU Kevin Warren and Angela Nutt co-Presidents of The Lesbian and Gay Student Union at the U. of U.  received anonymous threats of violence because of their attempts to get an anti-discrimination clause added to the student bill of rights. An organization called Utah Students Against Gays behind the threats. According to an article published by the Salt Lake Tribune, “Anonymous letters were sent through the university's campus mail to two professors and the co-presidents of the Lesbian and Gay Student Union. The letters included a hand-drawn Nazi swastika and the words "Death to the Gay" and "Thank God for AIDS." A second page included a typewritten statement claiming gays and lesbians deserve to be ostracized and despised for spreading the AIDS virus. University Police have a copy of the letter and "have been monitoring the situation," said Chief Wayne Shepherd.” "Utah Students Against Gays." The University Chief  also admitted that this was not the first incident of Gay Bashing. “Several week ago, he said a campus sidewalk was spray-painted with anti-gay slogans." Besides the letter, Kevin Warren told The Tribune he has received several hang-up telephone calls and one in which a male caller said he killed Kevin’s boyfriend. “In checking, Mr. Warren found his boyfriend to be safe. Both Mr. Warren and Ms. Nutt called the letters and telephone calls "extremely upsetting" and "frightening." They did not wish to name the two professors who also had received the letters. Ms. Nutt said the individual or group behind the threats also could be upset about a gay and lesbian conference that was held at the university earlier in October. The event received a great deal of coverage from the U. student newspaper. "The conference may have made someone very angry," she said. Besides contacting University Police, the LGSU leaders have worked  with an officer from the Salt Lake Police Department who is aware of tactics used by anti-gay groups within the local community, Mr. Warren said.”

1990 Friday -Rocky O'Donovan resigned from his Education subcommittee at Gay & Lesbian Community Council of Utahn tonight. He was upset that the Council suspended its own by-laws to be able to hold Chuck Whyte's Unity Show that was being held at a bar. The Youth Group had protested that it was being held at a bar.  I nominated Bobbie Smith for a second term as Secretary of the council because he asked me to do so.  An ad hoc committee was formed to educate the council on Ageism. I called it the Troll and Chicken Committee. After the meeting I talked to Empress Bianca, Alex Cueva, about having his medicine cards read Monday. He's excited about it and so am I. (Journal of Ben Williams)

1991 “Eye to Eye” an evening of staged readings of Gay and Lesbian Literature was presented at the Utah Stonewall Center. The event was season opener for “ONSTAGE”.    "Eye to Eye” featured readings of Gay and Lesbian fiction, poetry, theater and non-fiction written by 28 prominent international authors, including works by James Baldwin, William Shakespeare, Rita Mae Brown, Tennessee Williams, Judith McDaniel, Walt Whitman, Allen Ginsberg, Stephen Spender, Langston Hughes and Wendy Stevens.  Readers were Bobbi Fouts, Tyler Shaw, David Spencer and Deborah... Performance was provided by a grant from the Salt Lake City Art Council for a four-part literary arts series.

1992 Oregon’s Measure 9 Defeated: By a vote of 56-44%, voters in Oregon rejected Measure 9, which would have amended the state constitution to prohibit the expenditure of “monies or properties to promote, encourage or facilitate homosexuality, pedophilia, sadism or masochism.” This would have banned gay groups from using city parks or books about homosexuality in the public library. The measure was an effort of the Oregon Citizens Alliance, a conservative religious right group that was closely aligned with the Christian Coalition and was headed by Lon Mabon, with Scott Lively serving as his right hand man. The

Lon Mabon

campaign for Measure 9 was particularly nasty, with the OCA releasing a graphic video depicting gays as universally debauched and corrupt, while extolling the virtues of two “ex-gays.” The campaign also saw Lively found guilty of using unreasonable force to remove a free-lance photographer from an OCA meeting which debuted the video. Typical of anything associated with Lively, the OCA refused to acknowledge the magnitude of Measure 9′s defeat, and vowed to return to the ballot box two years later. But Measure 19 in went down in flames in 1994 by a similar margin. A poll in December 1992 found that 57% of all Oregonians had an unfavorable view of the OCA, against only a 14% with a favorable view. Lively called the poll “flawed.”  In 2002 Lon Mabon went to jail for refusing to pay damages occurred during the 1992 anti-Gay smear

1992 Colorado’s Amendment 2 Passed: You win one, you lose one. The same year in which Oregonians rejected Measure 9, voters in Colorado passed Amendment 2 to that state’s constitution which prohibited state and local governments or court from taking any action recognizing gays or lesbians as a protected class in anti-discrimination measures. The measure passed 60% to 40%. The Amendment immediately landed in court, with the State Supreme Court ruling that the measure couldn’t pass “strict scrutiny” under the Federal Constitution’s Equal Protection Clause. When supporters appealed to the U.S. Supreme Court, they ruled in 1995 in the landmark Romer v Evans that the measure didn’t even pass muster under a rational basis test. Justice Anthony Kennedy, writing for the majority, found that Amendment 2 went far beyond prohibiting “special rights” to gay people as supporters argued. It went further by actually disenfranchising gay people — and only gay people — from an important part of the political process. While everyone else could ask for redress from local governments and courts, gay people were singled out for being barred from that right of citizenship. “(Amendment 2) is at once too narrow and too broad,” he wrote. “It identifies persons by a single trait and then denies them protection across the board. The resulting disqualification of a class of persons from the right to seek specific protection from the law is unprecedented in our jurisprudence.”

Bianca

1995 Alex Cuevas "Bianca" the "Eternal Empress" XV of the Royal Court of the Golden Spike Empire died from AIDS at the age of 33. He/She was born 23 July 1962 and is buried in Sunset Hills Memorial Park Apple Valley, San Bernardino County, California, USA

1996 Page: C1The State School Board intends to take the heat when someone decides to sue over Utah's controversial stand on gay and lesbian clubs in public schools. And board members believe a lawsuit is inevitable    On Friday, the state Board discussed a new rule that would establish strict criteria that districts would have to follow when deciding whether a student club could be allowed. The preliminary draft calls for the protection of   students from influences that are detrimental to their welfare or are inappropriate for their age and maturity. The rule was approved on first reading by a 12-to-2 vote. But it will be debated and fine-tuned for at least two more months.  If adopted, the state's 40 school districts would be bound to follow the regulation, thus stripping them of any liability in case of a lawsuit-- which is precisely the board's intent.   ``What we don't want is a lawsuit over every different kind of club,'' said state education attorney Doug Bates. ``We want to structure a rule so we can get the issue fairly litigated and get it over with.''   Bates said if the rule is crafted properly, the state could win a court battle. If it did lose, though, it could cost taxpayers as much as $1 million in plaintiff attorney fees, he said.   Board member Grant Hurst said that today he knows of at least three Utah school districts that are looking to the state for guidance relating to school clubs. One of those is Granite School District, where a group of students at Cottonwood High School has applied to have a gay-straight alliance similar to the one proposed during the past school year.   That application, along with several other requests for new clubs, has been put on hold, said Granite's Deputy

Briant Farnsworth

Superintendent Briant J.Farnsworth.   ``We haven't said no to anyone,'' said Farnsworth. ``We have just been waiting for the board to address the issue in a policy.''   Farnsworth said Granite has been working on its policy for several months, but now probably will wait to make sure it is in line with what comes out of the State Office of Education.   The debate over gay and lesbian clubs in public schools began last spring when student sat East High School wanted to form a gay-straight alliance.   The Salt Lake City School Board decided to ban all clubs not related to academic courses rather than allow the club to form.   And during a special session in April, the Legislature passed a law enabling school districts to deny access to clubs that ``materially or substantially encourage criminal or delinquent conduct, promote bigotry or involve human sexuality.''   That prevents not only gay clubs, but also those such as the Ku Klux Klan, the Aryan Nation and even gangs.   The wording in the state law is included in the proposed rule from the state education office. In addition, the board calls for different regulations depending on the age of students. Those include:   -- Children in kindergarten through eighth grade could only be involved in ``school clubs'' or those specifically organized and directed by school officials.   – Ninth and 10th-graders could participate in ``supervised student clubs'' or those organized with the permission of school and operated under close supervision of a faculty sponsor.   – Eleventh and 12th-graders would be given the most leniency. They would be allowed to participate in ``monitored school clubs,'' or those with an assigned faculty adviser who provides support as necessary and is around mostly to make sure school rules are followed.

Jackie Bikupski

1998 In House District 30, Democrat Jackie Biskupski, the state's first openly gay candidate, is the target of broad conservative ire and faces a tough challenge by Republican first-time candidate Bryan Irving.   

2 November 2000 The Salt Lake Tribune Page: C1 At BYU, Lying And Lesbianism Take the Stage in  'Children's Hour' 'Children's Hour' Has a New  Take at BYU BY SCOTT C. MORGAN   THE SALT LAKE TRIBUNE Ever since it premiered on Broadway in 1934, Lillian Hellman's drama "The Children's Hour" has stirred up controversy. Although its 1936 film adaptation, "These Three," erased all traces of its controversial subject matter, the 1962 film version of "The Children's Hour" starring Audrey Hepburn and Shirley MacLaine helped break down barriers in Hollywood's Hays Production code, allowing a large American audience to catch a glimpse of the once-taboo issue of homosexuality. This week, "The Children's Hour" opens at Brigham Young University in Provo, where it will be anyone's guess how the play will be received. The plot for "The Children's Hour" comes directly from real-life events of 1810. In Edinburgh, Scotland, a vindictive girl accused two of her school headmistresses of lesbianism. The girl's grandmother spread the slanderous rumors, which eventually ruined the once-respected girls' boarding school and drove one of the women to suicide. For her first play, Hellman transferred the plot to a small Massachusetts town in the 1930s to powerfully show how malicious lies can destroy people's lives. She also exposed the harsh cruelty laid down on those who might fall outside societal norms. In the process, Hellman also brought to the stage Martha Dobie, who was "perhaps the first Gay character who wasn't an out-and-out stereotype, but a dramatic, sympathetic person," according to Fran Pruyn, who directed "The Children's Hour" in 1979 for the New Shakespeare Players (later to become TheatreWorks West). Pruyn, who says she has been openly Gay in Utah for about 20 years, points out that there have been hundreds of more positive and honest depictions of Gay and lesbian characters in literature and theater since the self-loathing Martha, but the fact that Martha existed was still important. "She was perhaps the only lesbian in American theater that was fairly visible up until the late 1960s," Pruyn said. At BYU, the take on the character of Martha is completely different. "That isn't what the play is about," said part-time BYU theater instructor Laurie Harrop-Purser, who was assigned to direct "Children's Hour." "It's about someone who gets caught up in a lie." She said that she thinks, within the play, if a homosexual relationship between the teachers hadn't been rumored by the students, Martha would not have considered it. "Even if she did have any of those feelings, I don't think that's who she is." Harrop-Purser's views were echoed by actress Christina Davis, the BYU senior who plays Martha. "I don't feel that she is actually a lesbian. What really drives her is her search for love," Davis said, referring to her character's enigmatic behavior as a form of co-dependency with the soon-to-be married teacher Karen Wright. "I think she never really experienced real love. Once the lie comes out, she thinks, 'Well, maybe this is the truth,' and actually says it. It's a last, desperate attempt to cling on." Whatever the interpretations behind Martha's motivations, the issues brought up in "The Children's Hour" have a contemporary relevance for many in Utah. In recent years, Spanish Fork High School teacher Wendy Weaver went to court when the Nebo School District tried to restrict her speech because she is a lesbian. The Salt Lake school board tried to squelch a Gay-straight student alliance that was forming at East High School in the 1995-96 school year. But to many Gays and lesbians working in Utah's theater community, "The Children's Hour" brings to mind the recent suicide of Stuart Matis, a 1994 BYU graduate who could not reconcile his homosexual feelings with his LDS upbringing. About two weeks before Californians voted this year on Proposition 22, the ballot initiative barring same-sex marriages in the state, Matis shot himself on the steps of a Mormon chapel in Los Altos, Calif. Many people close to Matis who were quoted in the national media said that the LDS Church's support of the initiative and the divisive anti-Gay comments that flowed across the state all hit Matis particularly hard. Pruyn likens Matis' situation to what Martha encounters in the play. "She was crumbling under society's pressures," Pruyn said. "There comes a time for many people when they realize that they are different and they have difficulty with the realization that they have to find a way to fit in with the rest of the world. Many people can't face that."   According to Harrop-Purser, "The Children's Hour" was scheduled for production long before Matis' suicide. "It's sad in both instances, in the play and what happened [in California]," she said, pointing out that the many strong women's roles in "The Children's Hour" was the reason behind its selection. Pruyn sees having "The Children's Hour" produced at BYU as an opportunity for discussion. "Even if it isn't positive, it is still discussion," she said.  controversial Playtime    "The Children's Hour" plays at the Harris Fine Arts Center Margetts Theatre on the campus of Brigham Young University in Provo tonight through Saturday, and Nov. 7-11 at 7:30 p.m. Tickets are $10, $8 for students and faculty. Call (801) 378-4322.

2005 SLC begins signup for domestic partner benefits Salt

Rocky Anderson

Lake Tribune Salt Lake City employees with domestic partners can start to sign up for the city's health benefits programs - even though it's unclear if the city legally can offer health insurance to those gay and heterosexual partners. The city's Human Resources Department sent an e-mail to employees Tuesday telling them they must enroll their domestic partners and their children by Nov. 30. Mayor Rocky Anderson signed an executive order in September providing domestic-partner benefits. The city's insurance provider refuses to offer medical and health benefits to domestic partners until a judge rules on whether it's legal. The court case is pending. Even so, the city wanted to be prepared. "It's a contingent enrollment," said Jodi Langford of the Human Resources Department. "We'll hold the paperwork contingent on the court judgment." The city can move ahead and provide employees' domestic partners with legal and psychological services. And they can qualify for discounted home and auto insurance offered through the city.

Providers of those services didn't question the executive order. - Heather May