Tweet
Using archival footage and interviews with pioneering activists, director/producer Glenne McElhinney takes us through One and the Mattachine Society, the lesbian controversy that disrupted the National Organization for Women.
History is made by people whose individual and collective acts shape and affect the world. These activists, many of whom are now in their 70s and 80s, hold valuable stories, personal and societal, and by sharing with us their experiences, they show us how each one of can make a difference. It is wonderful that the history and stories of seniors is being documented. These vital and important stories can give hope and inspiration in the movement for civil marriage equality, and remind us that gay or straight, our seniors have stories we need to hear, to record and to cherish, because without our past, our future is empty.
63 Comments
Support this site!
Subscribe to the newsletter
Advertise on Firedoglake
Send
us your tips
Make us your homepage
About Firedoglake
Before we start, just a couple quick notes: Please refresh your browser ever minute or so to see new comments, questions and answers. To reply to specific comment, hit the reply button underneath it and then type away. Always after a comment or question hit “send comment.”
Please stay on topic–in this case On These Shoulders We Stand, LGBT history, the importance of oral history, celebrating/honoring our seniors and remembering that we each can make history.
If you want to jump in about health care or anything else not about please find a post elsewhere on FDL to do so. Thank you.
Please–and I can’t believe I still have to say this, but–no ad hominen remarks. And please be respectful of our guests and of each other. And yeah, I tpye badly…
Hi Glenne! Thanks for being herre!
Hi Lisa,
Thanks for having us on.
Glenne, what inspired you to make On These shoulders…
Hearing the stories from LGBT older adults in Los Angeles tell how hard life was, especially pre-Stonewall. The LAPD, the City Fathers, and the Los Angeles Times, all three were especially harsh to the LGBT community at that time.
Hi Glenne – so glad you’re here with this film!
In fiction James Ellroy covers the LAPD’s attitude towards LGBT in his novels, which is how I first encountered that history…
Hi Kelly,
Have you had a chance to see it yet?
It’s very well documented that a lot of LAPD resources went into harassment and entrapment and arresting the LGBT community in Los Angeles.
How did you go about researchng and also finding the subjects to interview?
Unfortunately, no. I saw that this was upcoming on Book Salon, so I’ve been waiting for it, and to ask you questions!
I’m 48, so I fall into a somewhat undefined category. Too young for a Stonewaller, too old for Gen-X, so I have a funky in-between experience of watching the “outness” of the community unfold, but can definitely relate to things like bar raids.
I try to convey the sense of how difficult it was in the late ’70s early ’80s to younger gay guys, and they really don’t care for the most part. I always find myself appalled a bit by that.
I caught a certain melancholy from some of the bits in the trailer. Would you say it was true that the subjects generally were a little wistful about there roles in history?
I mean, those “shoulders” have to be a bit sore, no?
It’s amazing to me how consistently moved I am by civil-rights pioneers and their efforts, regardless of what demographic is doing the struggling. ALL fighters for human respect and freedom are simply inspiring.
Notice how these folks actually did something.
Regarding researching, I visited almost all the archives in Southern California especially the one archive in Los Angeles and the Mazer Lesbian Archive in West Hollywood.
Regarding finding the subjects to interview, I went to a number of places where LGBT seniors congregate, senior brunches, senior bingo, senior centers, and made presentations about why I wanted to gather their stories.
The subjects of this documentary were some of the first to respond to some of my requests for interviews.
Well, when back is to the wall, right?
Not to diminish the effort by pointing out the motivation!
We can each to do something–that is one the beauties of the film, these everyday people to MADE a difference by putting their energy and efforts forth.
We have no conflict on that.
It’s sooo inspirational.
Glenne…how long did it take you to compile the archival footage? Did yyou work wiht One? Or…?
I think one of the salient points of this doc is that anyone, no matter how hey big a role they may have played, can stand up for themselves and their community. Some of these folks were well known pioneers and some were folks who stood up in individual ways and were very courageous. All 11 in the film happen to be very good storytellers and really stood up for our community.
And wiht regards to your subjects–Where did you find them? They rreally spoke form their hearts…
Several months of dogged pursuit of images of early LGBT life in Southern California. Approximately 90% of all archival images are from Los Angeles. I felt it was important for the images of the film to be real, in terms of L.A. life.
Tell us a bit the different subjects…Nancy who arrested, and Don. And BTW thank you for including men and women of color. Also did you speak with former service men/women? What–especially in light of DADT and its pending repeal–experiences did they have?
Glenne – while LA and SF and NY are important, they are also earlier in the cycle of people demanding their rights.
It took longer in other parts of the country. Do you have plans for another film looking at a wider geography/time span?
There are just a few of the old bars left in LA. The Black Cat is now Le Bar, Woddy’s Hyperion has changed names and ownership, and there’s downtow with a keyhole shaped door….
I was enthralled by one story where the girl bar was behind the rooms where pool was played, drugs were dealt and prostitution went on….
Nancy Valverde was arrested over and over again by the LAPD for wearing male gendered clothing. Her experiences were horrific and she was continually harassed. Her story is very typical of early gay life in Los Angeles. Both women, men and transexuals have continually told us historians of how much the LAPD focused on cross-dressers or genderbedning in terms of attire.
Don Norman was dishonorably discharged from the Air Force when it was found out he was a homosexual. He was relieved at the time because he found the Air Force very homophobic and almost unsafe and was glad to get back to Los Angeles.
Good question Kelly.
The oral history project I direct called IMPACT STORIES is a California LGBT History Project. It is focused on California LGBT life, our straight allies and the broadcasters and journalists who covered us.
Were drag bars…at least drag performances—legal?
So you are showing this for students, Gay straight Alliances, etc?
I bet this will spawn a nice intergenerational dialog…
Are your seniors enthralled by LOGO and the openess now in comparison to thier youth? How do they feel about extreme queer culture?
No.
Since April of 1897 when the city fathers passed the anti-masquerading law, it was illegal to cross dress in Los Angeles. All gay bars were routinely raided by the LAPD and the Vice squad. Some drag performers did get the necessary permit which the LAPD would allocate to certain individuals. There appeared to be a double standard as some bars where A-list celebrities hung out did not get raided. My guess is they may have made payments to avoid the raids.
That’s a bit of what I was asking earlier.
Glenne – How could I get a screening in Denver?
Yes, we are feeling blessed that our target audience of 16 – 30 year olds are embracing this film. We are screening to colleges and high schools all over the Golden State.
The situation you describe of “illegal to cross dress” is still on the books in Arizona, Phoenix specifically. It still is selectively enforced.
West Hollywood was always an anomally in LA–for decades it was NOT a city but an unincorproated area of the county. There were lots of talent agents there because they didnt have ot pay city taxes, and lots of prostitution…When I was a kid in the late 60s and early 70s WeHo was THE gay center of the LA area…
How did tht develop do you think Glnee, was it the lack of LAPD presence?
We are applying to film festivals all over the country and would love to screen in Denver. We also are trying to get the word out to colleges and universities that may be interested in screening on campus in alliance with their LGBT resource centers, gender studies, history studies, multicultural studies and religious studies.
The seniors in the film are really amazed at the changes that have occurred during their lifetime.
One of my favorite stories about Los Angeles and unincorporated Los Angeles, (which was controlled by the L.A. County sheriff), is how gays would routinely try to outrun the LAPD either by foot, motorcycle or car and head for that border, which in 1984 became the city of West Hollywood. We also lived just outside of the LA City border as they wouldn’t raid our bars and the Sheriff seemed to leave us alone.
(and everyone please pardon my typping which is worse than normal tnght–flu)
Glenne, what is your next planned documentary–you’re continuing along this theme? But in what direction/tie period?
It seems like a lot of your interview subjects do a lot of community work, outreach, support organizations. ACLU, Gay Rights, NOW chapter, Women’s Health Collective, Chicano Rights, Anti-Racism Workshops, Chemical Dependenchy Counselor, etc. I am not goign to project “chicken/egg” I just wanted ot say how aweosme it is to see actively engaged people with a visions and goals.
My next project, which I have just launched in 2010, is a series of interviews which I plan to make into webisodes and mini-movies (mini-docs). It’s called TALES OF CALIFORNIA 1977-1982 Briggs, Bryant, Homophobia and the Coming Pandemic. I will be focusing on the golden era of social change for LGBT people in California and how we fought Anita Bryant and John Briggs, and then how the first year of AIDS struck our community so hard and how the pandemic was handled at that time.
I’ll go there with the chicken/egg thing.
If you survive a violent confrontation with those who will deny you not only your rights, but your existence, you inexorably come to the conclusion that it is the right that counts; and if you don’t have the right, others don’t either.
And if those rights aren’t universal, nobody has them.
It is true Lisa that this is an exceptional group of people. Not only did they struggle for being different and then stand up when faced with adversity, many of them used the skills they had gained to implement change in other communities and for the good of all Angelenos.
That sounds wonderful. I didn’t know about the Briggs Amendment until recently. I went ot an all-girls schools where about 50% of the teachers were LGB (it was more scandalous that our English teacher Miss B lived with a man rather than being married to him than that Miss X or Mr Y was gay..wierd)
But oh that Anita Bryant who could forget her…or ignore her
In my research I did find a lot of courageous individuals in Los Angeles who are now deceased, who also stood up for our community knowing that they were doing it for the greater good. Their lives may have been ruined professionally or personally but they knew much of the world was watching because it was Los Angeles and such a center of early LGBT life.
You have an impressive list of Advisors / Consultants for Impact Stories http://www.impactstories.org/advisors.htm
How long have they been part of the organization?
Glenne, you’ve had some success recently at festivals! Tell us please!
Just about everybody has been on board since the beginning of the launch of IMPACT STORIES October 2007.
I have been able to gather lots of support in all areas of oral history, academia, LGBT allies and the greater gay community.
We’ve screened at both OUTFEST 2009 in Los Angeles and the Palm Springs International Film Festival 2010.
http://spectrumculture.com/2009/08/spotlight-outfest.html
http://notesfromhollywood.ning.com/profiles/blogs/reports-from-a-darkened
http://www.psfilmfest.org/news/detail.aspx?NID=257&year=2010
We were fortunate to receive a Programming Award for Freedom at OUTFEST and a Special Mention from Palm Springs in the Audience Award ballading.
Glenne – been looking at the ImpactStories site, and a little nitpick.
On the “Tales of California” page, it needs to be Pneumocystis carinii. I know I’m not supposed to be the spelling cop, but it jumped out at me having lost so many to it.
Sorry for the OT, Lisa.
US KIA Afghanistan has reached the 1,000 mark.
Want to see how long it takes for the corporate media to report it.
Mod note: Please stay on topic during threads with guests. Thank you.
Thank you! We will correct it.
Please your horses.
:)
Will you have a following phase, past ’82? Reason I ask is about drug development and the problems there were with treating AIDS.
For instance from ’82 to say ’89 there was a huge emphasis on AZT, including waking the patient up in the middle of the night to dose. We know now that this increased toxicity and really, frankly, that regime took a lot of people out. Not to mention the cost of AZT.
Glenne, as someone who is now closer to AARP membership that I was when I rallied in WeHo in 1992, I want to thank you for creating a film that allows seniors voices to b heard and thier histories to be shared and appreciated.
Thnak you so MUCH fo rbeing here tonight and for sharing their stories with us. I can;t wait for the seocnd installment. And I urge all of you visit http://impactstories.org/ and to also cherish your elders and their stories.
though if Papa Falanga tells the rum cake story one more time…LOL (punch line: And she NEVER bought a rum cake again)
I’m sticking to the first year of AIDS in California and how it became couched as a gay disease and what a blunder that was, now looking back. The virus did not care. Homophobia was so rampant and affected the research, funding, treatment and tracking of the pandemic.
I am also interested in reaching out to young people and informing them how important it is to prevent infection from AIDS
You know Obama is so transparent in his shameless tactics to gain favor for the right wing Democrats. I think both the giving Diane Feinstein the “honor” of introducing the apparently anti big insurance provision and now Joe Lieberman the role of promoting DADT. Enjoy your bone GLBT. It at least is the first of anything he has thrown your way.
Thank you Lisa for organizing this chat.
Thanks for making the stories come alive and being here.
Cheers!
So many kids dont realize the reality of HIV/AIDS because they didn;t live through the deaths…
Thankyou again Glenne and firepups for a wonderful evening!
Thank you all for your excellent questions and comments. IMPACT STORIES will keep up the good work.
Not only is your comment irrelevant as ragards an historical GLBT documentary, which is the topic, your comment is beyond rude on more then one level.
I am sorry I thought the topic was GLBT rights and the battles that it has taken to get this far.
Please explain what you mean by “beyond rude.”
I have felt the Obama administration has treated the GLBT community abominably and was intending to express solidarity.