BAGLY: America’s first GLBT prom, 1981

By Erica Davies

In 1981, America's first prom designed for GLBT youth was sponsored by the Boston Alliance of Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual, and Transgender Youth (BAGLY) organization. With over one hundred youth in attendance at the onset, the youth-led group and corresponding events in 2007 reportedly attracted almost 1,600 youth. The annual dance was created as a "safe space" for those GLBT youth questioning their sexuality or wanting to participate in the promotion of public awareness in a welcoming community. The BAGLY prom is also known for its tradition of training various adults to chaperone, ensure safety, and periodically scan the bathrooms to prevent sexual activity or drug use. It has been hosted at venues like Arlington Street Church, the John Hancock Ballroom, and now its current place of residence: City Hall.

The present day BAGLY evolved from a crucial act of youthful rebellion into what is now a highly structured nonprofit organization with a paid staff, board of directors, and predominantly run under the jurisdiction of active GLBT youth participants with respect to adult advising. The Committee for Gay Youth (CGY) – BAGLY's precursor organization in 1980 – was overturned by youth because of the organization's domineering adult leadership. Ben Klein, current director of the AIDS Law Project for Gay and Lesbian Advocates and Defenders (GLAD) and one of the founding members of BAGLY, helped host a fundraising auction in the spring of 1980 at Buddies, a Boylston Street bar. The profit earned was then incorporated into the official launch of BAGLY that same summer."

“One of the things that is really extraordinary about BAGLY is that BAGLY in 1980 was the most diverse group of people I've ever been involved with anywhere in every sense. It was diverse racially, it was diverse in terms of class, it was diverse in the general range of life experiences that people had," said Klein. BAGLY continues to provide weekly group meetings and monthly social activities for youth aged twenty-two and under in order to foster a GLBT social network and to help create and maintain "a sense of personal and community identity."

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This entry is part of the featured exhibit Queer Youth - On Campus and in the Media curated by Sharon Ullman. As it is content created by a named author, editor, or curator, it is not open to editing by the general public. But we strongly encourage you to discuss the content or propose edits on the discussion page, and the author, editor, or curator will make any changes that improve the entry or its content. Thanks.