Legend in DC Gay Rights Movement Honored WASHINGTON - The Facebook generation is helping an historical legend from Washington DC who used a picket sign to start the gay rights movement.
Doctor Frank Kameny who still lives in Northwest has helped push the cause for more than a century. Now those who have benefited are helping him in his senior years. Frank Kameny long ago decided to give up a dream of being an astronaut to be an activist. Before there were pride parades or stonewall riots, there was a young Frank Kameny. He changed the tone and may have changed a generation. In the basement bar of the popular Florianas restaurant in Dupont Circle, Kameny talks about a half century of pushing for gay rights. At 85, Frank Kameny is considered the architect of the modern gay rights movement and has lived to see much of his life's work realized. I feel comfortable in the ensuing half century; I’ve helped make being gay much better now than it was then. It's not perfect, we still have a way to go," said Kameny. At the bar with him on this day is a 34 year old man who is part of a growing group in a younger generation who is starting a movement to toast the Civil Rights pioneer. LINKS: Buy Frank a Drank Facebook Page www.helpingourbrothersandsisters.com "I owe him. The entire gay community owes him. For sixty years he's fought to make my life better and to make life better for the people I care about," says Ben Carver. Kameny is a living legend wrapped in every color of the rainbow. He's a decorated veteran who served in World War Two in the Battle of the Bulge. He was fired by the government in 1957 for being gay; Kameny then led the first ever gay protests in front of the White House and the Pentagon. He also wrote and filed the first known brief for gay rights to the U.S. Supreme court. "It was filed almost to the day 50 years ago. It forced me to put my thoughts in order. I must say after 50 years it reads pretty well. I have a copy at home. I looked at it. It reads nicely," laughed Kameny. He also laughs at the notion that he has become one of the gay community's proudest monuments. When a street was named after him in the nations capitol, "Kameny Way,” he was still carrying one of his now historical picket signs. His Northwest house is now a DC landmark. Important letters to people like V.P. Hubert Humprey and others are now part of a collection of 70 thousand documents and papers at the library of congress as part of the historical record of the U.S. The same picket signs used 50 years ago are now part of the Smithsonian's American History Museum. Looking at a collection of photographs, Frank Kameny talks about being the first openly gay congressional candidate in 1971. He is best known for coining the phase "Gay Is Good." These days after more than a half century of work, Kameny is constantly being honored. With the repeal of 'Don't Ask Don't Tell and other LGBT victories; he's been to the White House several times; where a pen is as powerful as a picket sign. More than 50 years after he was fired for being gay, Frank Kameny was there as President Obama extended federal benefits to same sex couples. Kameny got the first pen used in the signing and says he treasures it. He notes that times have changed and he recently got an apology from his old bosses. "Here a half century after we picketed in front of a hostile White House which wouldn't even answer our letters; here now along with many others, I was an honored guess where the president himself addresses me as Frank. It represented a change that would have been unthinkable when we got started. I don't think any of us would ever have imagined that that would have occurred like that in our times. Because he's made life good for so many, some in the community believe its time to return the favor. "We owe Frank. He in many ways has been the backbone of our community he has done so much for us to get to the point where we can pay back the favor," said Carver. To do that, Kameny now has a Facebook page dedicated to him. He jokes it a new tool for a new generation. "Obviously you can't live without having heard of Facebook and Twitter. I'm not sure how either one of them operate exactly. I keep hearing of these things. I don't know anything about them," said Kameny laughing. The page is called 'Buy Frank a Drink.' It was started by 34 year old Ben Carver, a recent hate crime victim, who painfully knows there's more work to be done. First up; lending a helping hand to the person who laid the ground work. "For 10 dollars, the price of a nice cocktail, you can toast a gay rights legend and help him with basic living needs like food and electricity and other utilities," said Carver. "Im most grateful that, I’ve heard about," says Frank about the Facebook page. "If i get enough figurative drinks, I’ll be absolutely delighted. I'm deeply grateful to him. More than i can express." The group Helping our Brothers and Sisters first noticed Frank Kameny needed help during last year's snow storm when he had -- http://www.myfoxdc.com/dpp/news/local/legend-in-dc-gay-rights-movement-honored-012711 Via InstaFetch -- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "Sixties-L" group. To post to this group, send email to [email protected]. To unsubscribe from this group, send email to [email protected]. For more options, visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/sixties-l?hl=en.
