The United States Federal Bureau of Investigation and Homosexuality

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ENTRY UNDER CONSTRUCTION

Alphabetical Subject List

F.B.I. Surveillance of Homosexuals, Alleged Homosexuals, Persons Associated with Homosexuality, Homosexual Groups, and Anti-Homosexual Groups and Persons

This list in construction is composed of the names of individuals and groups listed on the FBI's "Vault Index" website as having some association with homosexuality.^[1] This list also contains the names of individuals known or rumored to have been homosexual or bisexual, or who were associated somehow with homosexuality, who had encounters with the FBI. This list also contains the names of individuals associated with homosexuality and who supported, or were alleged to support left-wing or liberal causes. Future research will show if the FBI had files on all these persons and if those files referred to homosexuality.

This research is intended to provide wide-ranging evidence of the surveillance of homosexuals, rumored homosexuals, or homosexuality conducted by the FBI.

ABSCAM.

Part 10 of 10 refers to "homosexuality". Accessed October 11, 2011 from FBI Vault.

ACTUP

Addams, Jane.

From the FBI Vault: Jane Addams (1860-1935) was an internationally known social worker, activist, and Nobel Peace Prize winner. This release concerns a treason investigation opened in 1924 involving the Women’s International League for Peace and Freedom; Addams was a founding member of the organization. Jane Addams Part 1 of 4, Jane Addams Part 2 of 4; Jane Addams Part 3 of 4; Jane Addams Part 4 of 4

Addams had a number of intimate relationships with women and it has been suggested that these included sexual desire and perhaps activity. See for example: Nara Schoenberg, "Outing Jane Addams: Was the founder of Hull House a lesbian? And does it matter? Chicago Tribune, February 06, 2007.

Alsop, Joseph

See: Edwin M. Yoder, Jr., Joe Alsop's Cold War: A Study of Journalistic Influence and Intrigue (Chapel Hill, NC: University of North Carolina Press, 1995), 153–6

American Nazi Party.

Accessed October 11, 2011 from FBI Vault.

Part 1 of 2 refers to ???.

Part 1 of 2 refers to "homosexuals".

Part 2 of 2 refers to "homosexuals".

Amerithrax.

Part 10 of 30 refers to "homosexuality". Part 05 refers to "lesbian".

Amerithrax, short for American anthrax attacks, was a multi-agency investigation led by the FBI. It was launched in October 2001. Accessed October 11, 2011 from FBI Vault.

Aptheker, Bettina.

FBI file?

Arvin, Newton

Atlanta Child Murders.

Accessed October 11, 2011 from FBI Vault. Refers to ?

Babcock, Ed.

Young Republican aid to Joseph McCarthy. Cited in J. Edgar Hoover: The Man and the Secrets By Curt Gentry. Page 379.

Baldwin, James

His FBI files contain references to his homosexualiity. See: Natalie S. Robins, Alien ink: the FBI's War on Freedom of Expression (William Morrow, 1992), page 348, etc.

Bankhead, Talulah.

FBI Vault: 11 pages. See: http://foia.fbi.gov/foiaindex/foiaindex_b.htm

Does her FBI file refer to homosexuality?

Beekman, Gustave.

Proprietor of homosexual brothel in Brooklyn, NY, in 1940s. Cited in J. Edgar Hoover: The Man and the Secrets By Curt Gentry. Page 287.

Bentley, Elizabeth.

Mary Price said that Bentley had made homosexual advances to her, which may or may not be true. Source: "Clever Girl, pages 315-316.

Bernstein, Leonard

720 pages. See: http://foia.fbi.gov/foiaindex/foiaindex_b.htm

Does his FBI file refer to homosexuality?

Bissinger, Carl.

Black Dahlia (Elizabeth Short).

Accessed October 11, 2011 from FBI Vault. In 1947, Elizabeth Ann Short (1924-1947) was brutally mutilated and murdered in Los Angeles. The FBI was heavily involved the investigation.

Part 3 of 4 refers to "lesbian".

Blitzstein, Marc:

FBI Vault: See: http://foia.fbi.gov/foiaindex/foiaindex_r.htm

Does his FBI file refer to homosexuality?

Blunt, Anthony.

FBI Vault: See: http://vault.fbi.gov/Anthony%20Blunt%20/Anthony%20Blunt%20Part%201%20of%201/view Accessed October 9, 2011.

An earlier URL listing 37 pages was: http://foia.fbi.gov/foiaindex/foiaindex_b.htm

Bourbon, Rae.

career as professional female impersonator; was an informant and investigated by the FBI. See: Romesburg, Don. “Longevity and Limits in Rae Bourbon’s Life in Motion,” in Transgender Migrations: The Bodies, Borders, and Politics of Transition, ed. Trystan Cotten (New York: Routledge, 2011), 130-131; and and Romesburg, Don. “Ray Bourbon: A Queer Biography” (MA Thesis, CU Boulder, Fall 2000), 180-187.

Boise, Idaho.

Anti-homosexual witch hunt. FBI cited in The Boys of Boise: Furor, Vice & Folly in an American City by John Gerassi (University of Washington Press, 2001), pages 7, 22, 49, 165.

FBI Files (citing Boise)

Brecht, Bertolt FBI Files

Buck, Pearl.

Part 3 of 4 refers to term "homosexual". Accessed October 11, 2011 from FBI Vault.

Pearl Buck Part 3 of 4 refers to "homosexuals".

Burgess, Guy

See also: Alma Routsong

Dietrich, Marlene.

Does she have an FBI file? Does it refer to homosexuality?

Donovan, William J.

Book Review - Wild Bill Donovan - By Douglas Waller - NYTimes.com www.nytimes.com/2011/02/13/books/review/Conant-t.html?...allFeb 11, 2011 – A biography of William J. Donovan, the head of the World War II ... the O.S.S. chief accumulated reports that the F.B.I. director was homosexual. ...

does the FBI have files on Donovan?

Douglas Waller: "Wild Bill Donovan The Spymaster Who Created the ... outhistory.org/.../Douglas_Waller:_%22Wild_Bill_Donovan_The_Sp...Feb 13, 2011 – OutHistory.org would like to know of additional sources referring to William J. Donovan, homosexuals, and homosexuality.

active in anti-homosexual witchhunt in Boise, Idaho? JNK thinks he remembers this. Check.

Ehrlichman, John.

Accessed October 11, 2011 from FBI Vault.

Part 1 of 5 refers to "homosexuals". RESEARCH !!!!

FBI agents

Unnamed, thought to be homosexual). Cited in J. Edgar Hoover: The Man and the Secrets By Curt Gentry. Page 755.

FBI Files

Collection of FBI files on homophile groups, homosexual emancipation groups, and gay liberation groups, 1953-1970. Archive of the Lesbian, Gay, Bisexua, & Transgender Community Center, New York City.

48. FBI FILES

Archive Number: 48

Date: 1953 to 1970

Size: 2 ½ feet

FBI Files 1953 to 1970

Provenance

This collection was donated by Martin Duberman. It came to us in 3 small boxes and 1 large box for a total of 2' 3". On speaking to Mr. Duberman on May 7, 1996 he told me the reason he was able to get his hands on this material. It seems that a Mr. Duncan Osborne , a writer for the Gay Press notified Mr. Duberman that he had sued the Government to obtain the rights to the files. The files had been released. Initially one person must sue the government to get the papers released. Mr. Duberman then paid $500- 600 dollars to get them copied and sent to him.

The first two boxes are arranged in groups of papers fixed together with metal fasteners, while the third box is all in folders. This box came to the Archive in loose form with each group / organization separated by a slip of paper marked with the organizations name.

Scope and Content

The general scope and content of this collection is extensive copies of papers collected on or about the various Mattachine Society, Gay Liberation Front, the North American Conference of Homophile Organizations, the National Planing Conference of Homophile Organizational the Western Conference of Homophile Organizations and their activities over the years 1953 - 1970's. The F.B.I. and The Justice Department kept track of members and events that they attended over this period of time. The records have been censored, sometimes in their entirety. A large amount of the information has been censored with a black marker.

The information on the particular organizations is at times wildly inaccurate. The collection, therefore, says more about the FBI than it does about the gay movement.

FBI informants

Unnamed, thought to be homosexual. Cited in J. Edgar Hoover: The Man and the Secrets By Curt Gentry. Page 412

Florida Legislative Committee ("The Johns Committee")^[4]

The Johns Committee begun interrogating suspected homosexuals among students and faculty on Florida campuses before the Legislature gave specific authorization for the investigation of homosexuals. In 1958, committee chairman Johns illegally sent a covert investigator to the University of Florida after his son, Jerome Johns, told his father that "effeminate instructors had perverted the curriculum."

In 1961, the Legislature directed the Johns Committee to broaden its investigations to include homosexuals and the "extent of [their] infiltration into agencies supported by state funds," particularly at state colleges and universities such as the University of Florida, Florida State University, and the University of South Florida. Having the power to subpoena witnesses, take sworn testimony, and employ secret informants, the committee spread terror among the closeted lesbian and gay population in state colleges, often using uniformed policemen to pull students and professors out of classes for interrogation.[5] All homosexual acts were crimes under Florida law at that time and remained so until the United States Supreme Court's Lawrence v. Texas ruling in 2003.[6] Admission of homosexuality constituted moral turpitude and was grounds for firing or expulsion from college. Research Request: FBI files, connection?

Gay Activists Alliance

FBI Vault: 534 pages

See: http://foia.fbi.gov/foiaindex/foiaindex_g.htm

Gay Activists Alliance:

FBI Vault: 135 pages.

From the F.B.I. website: "This Civil Rights organization originated [sic] at Ohio State University in the 1970's and had several other Chapters throughout the United States, which were concerned with equal rights for gays and lesbians." URL: http://foia.fbi.gov/foiaindex/gayalli.htm

Part 01

Part 02

Gay Liberation Front

FBI Vault: 1,113 pages

http://foia.fbi.gov/foiaindex/foiaindex_g.htm

Genet, Jean

FBI files?

Georgetown University student, female.

"When a Georgetown University professor was questioned by an FBI agent . . . about one of his students, he attributed both her lesbianism and her affinity for leftist ideology to her psychological problems."^[5]

Ginsberg, Allan. On his FBI files: See: Natalie S. Robins, Alien ink: the FBI's War on Freedom of Expression (William Morrow, 1992), page 348, etc.

Gold, Harry.

Part 29 of 108 refers to "homosexuality". Accessed October 11, 2011 from FBI Vault.

Goodman, Paul

Goodman’s outspoken support for young Vietnam War draft resisters . . . earned him the FBI classification of "subversive homosexual"^[6]

Hansberry, Lorraine

Does her FBI file mention her homosexuality?

http://www.nypl.org/archives/3686 New York Public Library: Lorraine Hansberry Papers (includes her FBI file).

See: Ben Keppel. The Work of Democracy: Ralph Bunche, Kenneth B. Clark, Lorraine Hansberry, and the Cultural Politics of Race. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press, YEAR? .

Hay, Harry.

Communist Party member; founder of Mattachine Society, Los Angeles.

Other Mattachine Society founders with CP or left affiliations?

Hellman, Lilian

Any reference to homosexuality or lesbianism in connection with her writing "The Children's Hour"?

Hells Angels.

Accessed October 11, 2011 from FBI Vault.

Helms, Jesse.

Accessed October 11, 2011 from FBI Vault.

Parts 03, 04 of 07 refer to "lesbian".

Part 04 of 07 refers to "homosexuals".

Part 03 of 07 refers to "homosexuals".

Hickock, Lorena

Research Request

Users of OutHistory would like to know more about what each of these files contains. If necessary, please contact Jonathan Ned Katz about adding data on the FBI surveillance of homosexuals or suspected homosexuals. Katz: jnk123@mac.com

Notes

↑ From the FBI Vault Index site: The FBI has converted many FOIA documents to an electronic format (PDF), and they may be viewed below. In the case of voluminous pages, only summaries or excerpts from the documents are online. Subjects are sorted alphabetically by first name. You can also use your browser's find feature to locate subjects on the page. Searches of the Vault Index:

A search of the FBI's Vault Index site for "homosexual" on October 9, 2011 returned 76 items. A search on the same date for "homosexuality" returned 26 items, some of which were not included in the original 76 items. A search for "homosexuals" returned 40 items some of which were not included in earlier searches,

A search for "lesbian" returned 8 items, some of which had not been included in the earlier results and are not yet integrated into the lists below:
(1) Mattachine Society Part 03 of 03;
(2) Jesse Helms Part 04 of 07;
(3) Alfred Kinsey Part 4 of 4;
(4) Black Dahlia (E Short) Part 3 of 4 In 1947, Elizabeth Ann Short (1924-1947) was brutally mutilated and murdered in Los Angeles. The FBI was heavily involved the investigation as it pertained to ...
(5) Jesse Helms Part 03 of 07;
(6) Supreme Court Part 24 of 34;
(7) Amerithrax Part 05 of 30 Amerithrax, short for American anthrax attacks, was a multi-agency investigation led by the FBI. It was launched in October 2001, when letters laced with ... ;
(8) J. Edgar Hoover Part 16 of 22

A search for "lesbianism" returned one result.

A search for "lesbians" was made on November 11, 20011, and provided six results not yet integrated into the alphabetical list below:
(1) New Alliance Party Part 3 of 3;
(2) Liberace Part 3 of 6;
(3) New Alliance Party Part 1 of 3;
(4) Alcatraz Escape Part 14 of 17;
(5) New Alliance Party Part 2 of 3;
(6) Walter Winchell Part 56 of 58. These have not yet been integrated into the alphabetical list below.

A second search for "lesbians" on November 29, 2012 turned up additional references, so the FBI is adding to its online files: Liberace Part 3 of 6
Alcatraz Escape Part 14 of 17
New Alliance Party Part 2 of 3
New Alliance Party Part 1 of 3
Mattachine Society Part 01 of 03
Bremer Kidnapping Part 11 of 459
Senator Edward "Ted" Kennedy Part 20 of 27
New Alliance Party Part 3 of 3
Walter Winchell Part 56 of 58

A search for the term "gay" [in 20011] included 504 results, all of which may not refer to homosexuality and the results have not been included in this list. A search for "gay and homosexual" returned 21 results not yet included on the list below.
A search of the Vault Index for the terms "pervert", "perverts, "perversion", and "perversions" (used commonly about homosexuals and homosexuality in the 1940s, 1950s, and early 1960s, also returns some entries which refer specifically to homosexuality without using some version of that term. These results have not yet been added to the list below.

A Note on the URLS
On October 8, 2011 some of the earlier-listed URLs on this page from the FBI Vault are no longer working. The same content appears to be available on the FBI Vault website under different URLs that have not yet been added to this page, replacing the earlier ones.

For the FBI's site see: [http://vault.fbi.gov/reading-room-index Federal Bureau of Investigation. The Vault Index.
↑ Routsong, Alma. In: Lesbians Who Changed the World. Elizabeth Deran, "Patience & Sarah Come to Life", in Patience and Sarah By Isabel Miller. ReadHowYouWant, June 11, 2010. Paperback: 312 pages ISBN-10: 1458774082. ISBN-13: 978-1458774088.
↑ Deran to Katz, November 24, 2011 1:24:20 PM EST.
↑ Wikipeddia: Florida Legislative Committee. Accessed December 5, 2011.
↑ David K. Johnson, The Lavender Scare: The Cold War Persecution of Gays and Lesbians in the Federal Government (University of Chicago Press, XXXX), pages 35-36.
↑ Website of the film Paul Goodman Changed My Life.
↑ Accessed November 11, 2011 from http://www.paperlessarchives.com/hoover.html
↑ http://tpmmuckraker.talkingpointsmemo.com/2011/11/hoover_worried_lice-covered_ferret_journalist_would_report_he_was_gay.php
↑ Routsong, Alma. In: Lesbians Who Changed the World. Elizabeth Deran, "Patience & Sarah Come to Life", in Patience and Sarah By Isabel Miller. ReadHowYouWant, June 11, 2010. Paperback: 312 pages ISBN-10: 1458774082. ISBN-13: 978-1458774088 page 237.
↑ Cited in J. Edgar Hoover: The Man and the Secrets By Curt Gentry. Page 307-308.

[1] From the FBI Vault Index site: The FBI has converted many FOIA documents to an electronic format (PDF), and they may be viewed below. In the case of voluminous pages, only summaries or excerpts from the documents are online. Subjects are sorted alphabetically by first name. You can also use your browser's find feature to locate subjects on the page. Searches of the Vault Index:

A search of the FBI's Vault Index site for "homosexual" on October 9, 2011 returned 76 items. A search on the same date for "homosexuality" returned 26 items, some of which were not included in the original 76 items. A search for "homosexuals" returned 40 items some of which were not included in earlier searches,

A search for "lesbian" returned 8 items, some of which had not been included in the earlier results and are not yet integrated into the lists below:
(1) Mattachine Society Part 03 of 03;
(2) Jesse Helms Part 04 of 07;
(3) Alfred Kinsey Part 4 of 4;
(4) Black Dahlia (E Short) Part 3 of 4 In 1947, Elizabeth Ann Short (1924-1947) was brutally mutilated and murdered in Los Angeles. The FBI was heavily involved the investigation as it pertained to ...
(5) Jesse Helms Part 03 of 07;
(6) Supreme Court Part 24 of 34;
(7) Amerithrax Part 05 of 30 Amerithrax, short for American anthrax attacks, was a multi-agency investigation led by the FBI. It was launched in October 2001, when letters laced with ... ;
(8) J. Edgar Hoover Part 16 of 22

A search for "lesbianism" returned one result.

A search for "lesbians" was made on November 11, 20011, and provided six results not yet integrated into the alphabetical list below:
(1) New Alliance Party Part 3 of 3;
(2) Liberace Part 3 of 6;
(3) New Alliance Party Part 1 of 3;
(4) Alcatraz Escape Part 14 of 17;
(5) New Alliance Party Part 2 of 3;
(6) Walter Winchell Part 56 of 58. These have not yet been integrated into the alphabetical list below.

A second search for "lesbians" on November 29, 2012 turned up additional references, so the FBI is adding to its online files: Liberace Part 3 of 6
Alcatraz Escape Part 14 of 17
New Alliance Party Part 2 of 3
New Alliance Party Part 1 of 3
Mattachine Society Part 01 of 03
Bremer Kidnapping Part 11 of 459
Senator Edward "Ted" Kennedy Part 20 of 27
New Alliance Party Part 3 of 3
Walter Winchell Part 56 of 58

A search for the term "gay" [in 20011] included 504 results, all of which may not refer to homosexuality and the results have not been included in this list. A search for "gay and homosexual" returned 21 results not yet included on the list below.
A search of the Vault Index for the terms "pervert", "perverts, "perversion", and "perversions" (used commonly about homosexuals and homosexuality in the 1940s, 1950s, and early 1960s, also returns some entries which refer specifically to homosexuality without using some version of that term. These results have not yet been added to the list below.

A Note on the URLS
On October 8, 2011 some of the earlier-listed URLs on this page from the FBI Vault are no longer working. The same content appears to be available on the FBI Vault website under different URLs that have not yet been added to this page, replacing the earlier ones.

For the FBI's site see: [http://vault.fbi.gov/reading-room-index Federal Bureau of Investigation. The Vault Index.

[2] Routsong, Alma. In: Lesbians Who Changed the World. Elizabeth Deran, "Patience & Sarah Come to Life", in Patience and Sarah By Isabel Miller. ReadHowYouWant, June 11, 2010. Paperback: 312 pages ISBN-10: 1458774082. ISBN-13: 978-1458774088.

[3] Deran to Katz, November 24, 2011 1:24:20 PM EST.

[4] Wikipeddia: Florida Legislative Committee. Accessed December 5, 2011.

[5] David K. Johnson, The Lavender Scare: The Cold War Persecution of Gays and Lesbians in the Federal Government (University of Chicago Press, XXXX), pages 35-36.

[6] Website of the film Paul Goodman Changed My Life.

[7] Accessed November 11, 2011 from http://www.paperlessarchives.com/hoover.html

[8] ttp://tpmmuckraker.talkingpointsmemo.com/2011/11/hoover_worried_lice-covered_ferret_journalist_would_report_he_was_gay.php

[9] Routsong, Alma. In: Lesbians Who Changed the World. Elizabeth Deran, "Patience & Sarah Come to Life", in Patience and Sarah By Isabel Miller. ReadHowYouWant, June 11, 2010. Paperback: 312 pages ISBN-10: 1458774082. ISBN-13: 978-1458774088 page 237.

[10] Cited in J. Edgar Hoover: The Man and the Secrets By Curt Gentry. Page 307-308.

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F.B.I. and Homosexuality: Persons and Groups Investigated

The United States Federal Bureau of Investigation and Homosexuality

ENTRY UNDER CONSTRUCTION

Alphabetical Subject List

Research Request

Notes

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