Newsletters, Documents, and Other Primary Sources

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Timeline of Sources Page Under Construction


Below is a collection of sources that were used as documentation to support the History of the Alice B. Toklas Democratic Club Exhibit and are organized in a timeline from 1966 to the present. Special thanks to the GLBT Historical Society of Northern California for preserving the Alice Reports Newsletters below.


1966


1969-1971


1972

  • Democratic National Party Platform, 1972 "Gay Plank" is under “The Right to be Different” section, and says “Americans should be free to make their own choice of life-styles and private habits without being subject to discrimination or prosecution. We believe official policy can encourage diversity while continuing to place full emphasis on equal opportunity and integration.”
  • Alice Reports December, 1972, pgs 3-4 (More discussion of Alice formation logistics, working with Phil Burton and Willie Brown to pay for office space, and discussion of Alice's involvement in the National election)


1973


1975

  • Alice Reports May, 1975, Page 1 (Teamster Local 888 Letter in support of gay rights - Alice and gay advocates partner in the Coors Boycott and build an alliance)
  • Alice Reports July, 1975, Pgs 1-2 (Backlash against consensual sex law. This backlash would build into an organized effort in following years led by State Senator Briggs to place Measure 6 on the 1978 state ballot to ban gay people from being teachers.)


1976


1977


1978

  • Gay Vote, January, 1978 First issue of Gay Vote, the newsletter of the Gay Democratic Club (later named the Harvey Milk Democratic Club) Cover of newsletter.
  • Gay Vote, January, 1978 First issue of Gay Vote, the newsletter of the Gay Democratic Club, pg 2 (discusses why the club formed)


1979


1980

  • 1980 Democratic National Party Platform Gay platform plank is under "Civil Rights" and states "All groups must be protected from discrimination based on race, color, religion, national origin, language, age, sex or sexual orientation.”


1981


1982


1983


1984

  • 1984 Democratic National Party Platform Under “Chapter II, Justice, Dignity, Opportunity – Introduction” “Government has a special responsibility to those whom society has historically prevented from enjoying the benefits of full citizenship for reasons of race, religion, sex, age, national origin and ethnic heritage, sexual orientation, or disability.”


1985


1986


1987


1988

  • 1988 Democratic National Party Platform (9th “We Believe” section) “We believe that we honor our multicultural heritage by assuring equal access to government services, employment, housing, business enterprise and education to every citizen regardless of race, sex, national origin, religion, age, handicapping condition or sexual orientation.”


1989

  • New York Times, May 31, 1989 San Francisco Board of Supervisors President Harry Britt passes San Francisco Domestic Partnership Ordinance that was later signed by Mayor Art Agnos. Britt had championed this effort and passed a similar ordinance in 1982 that was vetoed by Mayor Feinstein. Feinstein said the 1982 legislation was rushed and drafted poorly, and she later created a task force to establish domestic partnership, but efforts stalled until Britt's 1989 law. This law along with West Hollywood's, Berkeley's and other municipal ordinances, while offering few legal protections or benefits, set the stage for future California domestic partnership and marriage equality legislation.


1990


1991


1992

  • 1992 Democratic National Party Platform Under “Civil Rights and Equal Rights” the platform states: “We will reverse the Bush Administration's assault on civil rights enforcement, and instead work to... aggressively prosecute hate crimes... provide civil rights protection for gay men and lesbians and an end to Defense Department discrimination”


1995


1996

  • 1996 Democratic National Party Platform Under “The American Community” section, the platform states: “We continue to lead the fight to end discrimination on the basis of race, gender, religion, age, ethnicity, disability, and sexual orientation… We support continued efforts, like the Employment Non-Discrimination Act, to end discrimination against gay men and lesbians and further their full inclusion in the life of the nation.”


1998


1999


2000

  • 2000 Democratic National Party Platform Several fairly lengthy sections added related to LGBT rights and AIDS, under "Hate Crimes", "Fighting Diseases", and "Fighting for Civil Rights and Inclusion".


2001


2002


2003


2004

  • Calgary Newsworld Video Footage, February, 2004, Shum Preston and Mike Meyers discuss their marriage along with the rush of 2,500 same sex couples to San Francisco get married on Valentines Day, 2004, when Mayor Gavin Newsom directed San Francisco's County Clerk to issue marriage certificates to same sex couples.
  • Alice Reports March, 2004 (1st online edition of Alice Reports, recounting Mayor Newsom's February decision to issue marriage licenses to same sex couples on Valentines Day, 2004)
  • Democratic National Party Platform, 2004 Under “A Strong American Community” - “We will enact the bipartisan legislation barring workplace discrimination based on sexual orientation. We are committed to equal treatment of all service members and believe all patriotic Americans should be allowed to serve our country without discrimination, persecution, or violence… We support full inclusion of gay and lesbian families in the life of our nation and seek equal responsibilities, benefits, and protections for these families. In our country, marriage has been defined at the state level for 200 years, and we believe it should continue to be defined there. We repudiate President Bush's divisive effort to politicize the Constitution by pursuing a "Federal Marriage Amendment." Our goal is to bring Americans together, not drive them apart.”


2005

  • Alice Reports January, 2005 Letters from Alice, Human Rights Campaign and others pushing back against the idea that same sex marriage and LGBT issues lost the 2004 election
  • Alice Reports February, 2005 Alice creates "Emeritus Board" to accommodate the massive club by allowing new members to join the working board, and allow longtime members to have a Board vote, but function more like an advisory Board. Alice Board meetings regularly host about 50 people at each Board meeting.
  • Alice Reports May, 2005 California Democratic Convention - LGBT Caucus and Alice members participate as the California Democratic Party reversed its position and came out in support of same sex marriage.
  • Alice Reports June, 2005 Human Rights Commission Finding of racism at Badlands local bar and Alice letter to the Bay Area Reporter addressing the issue + letter from Alice Board member John Newsome giving background on the issue.
  • Alice Reports September, 2005 Co-Chairs Scott Weiner and Laura Spanjian discuss years of work to build a better relationship between Harvey Milk Democratic Club and Alice.
  • Alice Reports December, 2005 Harvey Milk and Alice Democratic Club Co-Chairs reflect on shared work by two clubs in fighting Governor Schwarzenegger's conservative measures in special election.


Recent History: from 2006 to Present


2006

  • Alice Reports January, 2006 Laura Spanjian talks about Alice progress during her two years as co-chair. Alice joins community letter to protest police video.
  • Alice Reports March, 2006 Former Alice Co-Chair Laura Spanjian appointed to Democratic County Central Committee; Nancy Pelosi urges action on hate crimes prevention law.
  • Bay Area Reporter, March, 2006 Story on Kamala Harris announcement of 'panic defense' conference, among District Attorney's, to combat 'gay panic' and 'trans panic' legal defense charade.
  • Alice Reports May, 2006 Alice Treasurer Jim Maloney discusses his Military Education Initiative organization to overturn "Don't Ask, Don't Tell".
  • Alice Reports July, 2006 Reflections on 25th Anniversary of discovery of AIDS. Three longstanding members of the local San Francisco community, Frederick Hobson, Eric Rofes and Joe Dignan pass away.
  • Alice Reports August, 2006 Interview with Democratic Central Committee Chair Scott Weiner; District Attorney Kamala Harris discusses Hate Crimes and Gay/Transgender Panic issue.
  • Alice Reports September, 2006 Alice Co-Chair Rebecca Prozan discusses the passing of deeply loved San Francisco Supervisor Sue Bierman. Bierman was a local hero who first got on the local political scene fighting against developers for open space areas. She became one of the few local figures who was adored by almost every corner of local politics due to her sincerity and graciousness - it didn't matter where you sat on the political arena. She was a one-of-a-kind and San Franciscans continue to miss her.
  • Alice Reports November, 2006 Pre-Election rally details with Bill Clinton, Rahm Emmanuel, and Nancy Pelosi at the Warfield in San Francisco.
  • Alice Reports December, 2006 Speaker Designate Nancy Pelosi talks about the future. Alice get out the vote efforts helped lead to more than 70% turnout in many precincts during this "democratic wave" election.


2007

  • Alice Reports January, 2007 Alice Co-Chair Scott Weiner discusses overview of Alice achievements over the last couple years during his term as Co-Chair.
  • Alice Reports February, 2007 Julius Turman, 1st African American Co-Chair of Alice elected January, 2007, discusses his goals for the club. Also, Alice writes joint community letter condemning racist hate crime against Guy Clark's local Castro flower business.
  • Alice Reports April, 2007 "20 Years of Acting Up" - several stories on the 20 year anniversary of Act-Up and its national impact.
  • Alice Reports May, 2007 Alice discusses early endorsements process and responds to criticism of early endorsement process from the Bay Area Reporter.
  • Alice Reports July, 2007 Story on Elizabeth Edwards, wife of Presidential Candidate John Edwards, attending the June, 2007 Alice Pride Breakfast.
  • Alice Reports November, 2007 Several Alice columns arguing against a Employment Non-Discrimination Act that excludes transgender people. Alice begins campaign for an inclusive ENDA.


2008

  • Alice Reports March, 2008 In Memoriam Congressman Tom Lantos; and Mark Leno thanks Alice for successful signature drive to place his name on ballot for State Senate.
  • Alice Reports May, 2008 Alice Reports editor Reese Aaron Isbell discusses specifics of Alice's get out the vote organization and its importance to the work the club does.
  • Video Collage June, 2008 Wedding of Del Martin and Phyllis Lyon, first same sex couple to get married in San Francisco by Gavin Newsom in 2004 during the "Winter of Love; First couple to be married by Gavin Newsom again in June, 2008 after the California Supreme Court ruled the ban on same sex marriage unconstitutional; and also, the couple were the founders of the first lesbian rights organization, the Daughters of Bilitis, founded in San Francisco in 1955 (For more history on the Daughters of Bilitis, consult Sexual Politics, Sexual Communities, The Making of a Homosexual Minority in the United States, 1940-1970, by John D'Emilio).
  • Alice Reports July, 2008 Letter from Alice to the Human Rights Campaign expressing refusal to participate in HRC dinner due to the HRC's "refusal to advocate for an inclusive ENDA". Recap of June election results. Letters from Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton to Alice.
  • 2008 Democratic National Party Platform Sections on AIDS under Affordable Healthcare and Global Health. Also, under section "A More Perfect Union", the platform states "Democrats will fight to end discrimination based on race, sex, ethnicity, national origin, language, religion, sexual orientation, gender identity, age, and disability in every corner of our country, because that's the America we believe in… We will pass the Local Law Enforcement Hate Crimes Prevention Act… We support the full inclusion of all families, including same-sex couples, in the life of our nation, and support equal responsibility, benefits, and protections. We will enact a comprehensive bipartisan employment non-discrimination act. We oppose the Defense of Marriage Act and all attempts to use this issue to divide us.


2009

  • Alice Reports January, 2009 Julius Turman reflects on Alice progress over his two years as Co-Chair. Alice joint letter on the fight over marriage equality after losing Proposition 8. Reflections on Barack Obama winning the Presidency.
  • Human Rights Campaign Dinner Dianne Feinstein talks about meeting with a 'gay group in 1969' (8:45 minutes into speech), and that group was the Society for Individual Rights, who's members would later form the Alice B. Toklas Memorial Democratic Club in 1971
  • Alice Reports May, 2009 Co-Chairs discuss upcoming decision by California Supreme Court on constitutionality of Proposition 8.


2010

  • Huffington Post, February, 2010 The United States Tax Court overturns the IRS and determines that sex reassignment surgery is not a 'cosmetic' surgery, and the article explains how the City of San Francisco demonstrated the low cost of providing transgender healthcare benefits to transgender people.


Home


Copyright (c) by Nathan Purkiss, 2010. All rights reserved. Contact nathanpurkiss@yahoo.com

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