Month: June 2019

Racial Justice

The Gibson’s Bakery Case in Oberlin

When we hear the words “reaction” and “reactionary” we usually think of the rightwing. More and more, in our angry and polarized environment these days, the liberal left is falling into this same behavior. I wrote about this in January when I analyzed the Lincoln Memorial confrontation between Catholic high school student Nick Sandmann and Indian activist Nathan Phillips. (See “A Teaching Moment.”) Events following … Continue reading The Gibson’s Bakery Case in Oberlin

Bob Laycock (He/Him)1 Comment
LGBTQ+

The State of Pride Today

Pride Month is winding down for this 50th year since Stonewall. I hope you’ve enjoyed my weekly posts marking this milestone. We’ve made remarkable progress since Stonewall, but the struggle continues. We advance, backlash follows, but we continue the fight — and we are winning. For this last Pride Month 2019 post, I thought I’d take a look at where we stand today. A big … Continue reading The State of Pride Today

Bob Laycock (He/Him)Leave a comment
LGBTQ+, Transgender

The 50th Anniversary of Stonewall

This month marks the 50th Anniversary of the Stonewall Riots in Greenwich Village, New York City. The videos below tell the story. Like other struggles for human and democratic rights, the LGBT community rose up in violent reaction to decades of deadening and inhumane oppression. It wasn’t planned. Such things aren’t. There simply arrives a moment in history when it’s time. When enough is enough. … Continue reading The 50th Anniversary of Stonewall

Bob Laycock (He/Him)Leave a comment
LGBTQ+, Transgender

The Riot Before Stonewall

This month we celebrate the 50th anniversary of the June 1969 Stonewall Riots in Greenwich Village. As well we should! Those few nights were the birth of the modern gay liberation movement which has brought us to where we are today. But it wasn’t the first gay riot. Three years earlier, in August 1966, a riot broke out at Compton’s Cafeteria in the Tenderloin District … Continue reading The Riot Before Stonewall

Bob Laycock (He/Him)Leave a comment
LGBTQ+, Transgender

Coming Out in the 50s thru 80s

Last week I talked about Cleveland’s first annual Gay Pride celebration, Pride ’89. It was such a different world back then! This week I present a series of videos with interviews from YouTube describing gay life over the four decades leading up to Cleveland’s 1989 celebration. The interviews are conducted by high school and college students. The people interviewed include activists of their era like … Continue reading Coming Out in the 50s thru 80s

Bob Laycock (He/Him)Leave a comment