BijouBlog

I attended Chicago's forty-fourth annual Gay Pride Parade, mostly to wait for the Leather Pride float sponsored by Touché (it was practically at the end of the line-up; I wonder why?) Standing with a friend in an area away from the crowds at the barricades where we could both smoke, I noticed less gay bar floats (the older, at this point, community fixtures like Baton and Sidetracks showed up; more welcoming religious organizations (they pretty much marched together en masse, a stunning effect which should silence the holy haters like the Westboro Baptist Church); more schools including Nettlehorst, a local primary school; less politicians (though the really key figures like the Governor and the Mayor showed up, pretty much a given these days); but, overall, many groups, even nonpolitical ones, emphasized marriage equality given the recent decision on DOMA by the Supreme Court. 

A 1960s gay publication called Drum (issue number 22, undated, but probably 1966) published by the Janus Society of America, displayed a keen sense of humor in its features called “Gay Moments in Advertising” and “Gay Moments in News Coverage.” Given that life for LGBT citizens in America during that supposedly liberating time (for heterosexuals, that is) was a life of secrecy and oppression, many gay-related venues resorted to “drag” or “camp” as a way of sublimating feelings of fear and shame. 

Little David, a small regional magazine, served as a kind of gay news-magazine/travel guide (and including some nudies too) for the burgeoning, newly open gay community in Florida outside of Key West in the 1970s. These new worlds offered activities and places where gay men could vacation and joy themselves were now openly advertising, where one gets a sense of richness, diversity and just plain fun in that color-crazy disco fever party time after Stonewall and before AIDS.

The Advocate in its March 29, 1972 issue publicizes a "gay wedding" in Canada, yes, in 1972. According to the feature story, Michael Girouard, a radio-television personality, and Rejean Tremblay were married, publicly, in Toronto on September 11 (?!) by a bishop of the "Order of Independent Old Catholics." (definitely not the Roman Catholic Church!). Now, of course, gay marriage is legal in Canada, and has been since 2005, but 1972, that's pretty cool.

Yet another article about this topic foreshadows the current dispute about gay marriage: that gays should not mimic heterosexual marriage "demeans what they views an emerging gay lifestyle." Though, at this time, the gay-friendly Metropolitan Community Church was marrying many couples, though of course they could not possess any practical legal benefits. Remember again this is 1972, no protest's, no church and crazy right wingers, no congress, no politicking, not a big issue.