LYCOS RETRIEVER 
Gays: Closet
built 236 days ago
These were the first such demonstrations in American history and began an era of gays coming out of the closet. Gittings' involvement in the gay rights movement started in the late 1950s when she helped organize the New York City chapter of the Daughters of Bilitis (D.O.B.). It was there she met her life partner Kay Lahausen, who has been by her side for 46 years.Gittings other accomplishments include head of the American Library Association's Gay Task Force. In 2003 The American Library Association presented Gittings with it's highest honor, a lifetime membership. She was an active cornerstone in the campaign that led to the American Psychiatric Association dropping its categorization of homosexuality as a mental illness in 1973.
Source:
Redneck gays: Nothing could be farther from the media stereotype -- the bête noir of the Christian Right -- of sissified, ultra-liberal, urban professionals who have "chosen" a decadent "lifestyle." Far from San Francisco and New York, though, redneck gays have been a constant, if shadowy presence in the South since, well, since the South began. These construction workers, plumbers, electricians, security guards, and even U.S. Marines are not just a silent minority... they're invisible -- except to their secret lovers. They're not just in the closet, they're in the cellar.
Source:
Today, shame still keeps most gays in the closet, Wan said. It ... encourages ignorance of health risks, with condom use limited to about 5 percent, according to one of his surveys. Partially as a result of this behavior, the official number of HIV carriers has reached 1,774, and independent experts believe the real number to be higher than 10,000. Despite the growing problem, the government has moved slowly to promote AIDS awareness.
Source:
In his book The Celluloid Closet, Vito Russo analyzes the representation of gays and lesbians in Hollywood films from the 1890s to the 1980s, and demonstrates a history of homophobia. He argues that Hollywood’s portrayal of lesbians and gay men has often been cruel and homophobic. Gay and lesbian characters have been defined by their sexual orientation, and lacked any complex character development.
Source:
MORE ABOUT
Closet