National Gay Mobilizing Committee for a March on Washington, May 1973-December 1973
The Cast - Major players identified. Actual historical figures on left.
Jeff Graubart, GLF activist, YSA member, Coordinator NGMC, Narrator | Dave Rosen |
William Stanley, GLF activist, YSA member, NGMC member | Winston Stanfield III |
Roger Walther, President GLF and NGMC | Roger Hamilton |
Wayne Sunday, GAA Secretary, YSA member, NGMC supporter | Zach Doubleday |
John O'Brien, GAA member, SWP member, NGMC supporter | Austin O'Rourke |
Garret Gray, Leader, Illinois Gays for Legislative Action | Larry Gulian |
All other LGBT activists mentioned, some with minor speaking roles | Real Names Used |
Keeping my Demons at Bay
Having won some points with the national and regional offices of the Young Socialist Alliance and Socialist Workers Party for my strong showing (by revolutionary socialist standards) in the Urbana Mayoral race, and by this time completely obsessed with the fight for gay liberation as the only way to keep away my demons, I decided to call in my marker with the YSA and push them to provide the infrastructure for a gay and lesbian march on Washington.
Not only were LGBT people suspicious, at best, of revolutionary socialists and vice versa, but I was not well-known on a national level as either a gay activst or a revolutionary socialist. However, sometimes audacity and naivete can make for good history.