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John D'Emilio: Oral Histories

23 oral LGBTQ histories written by co-director of OutHistory John D'Emilio.
Esther Eng (1914-1970): Filmmaker, Restaurateur, Gender Rebel, by Christianne A. Gadd

Esther Eng made a name for herself as the world's first female Chinese American filmmaker, a successful restaurateur, and—rejecting social expectations—a woman who felt little need to hide her romantic and sexual relationships with other women.…
Scared and Confused to Gay and Elected, 1949-2015, by Gary Miller

A memoir detailing the struggles of Gary Miller's childhood and youth in San Diego and Kansas City before turning to his subsequent political and community service in San Francisco, Sacramento, and Roseville, CA. Published originally on…
Timeline: FBI and Homosexuality, 1908-2015

This chronology surveys the history of the U.S. Federal Bureau of Investigation's surveillance of homosexuals and alleged homosexuals. It includes references to what was considered gender and sexual deviance. It also includes surveillance of the…
Harry Hay: Founding the Mattachine Society, 1948-1953, by Jonathan Ned Katz

A 1974 interview with Harry Hay about founding the Mattachine Society in California.
Profiles of Ten LGBT Activists for Social Justice, 2013/2017, by Rich Wilson

Profiles of ten LGBT social justice activists by Rich Wilson. First published December 10, 2013. Last edited: May 28, 2017.
Man-i-fest: FTM Mentorship in San Francisco, 1976 -2009, by Megan M. Rohrer

Man-i-fest follows the letters of Lou Sullivan to David, highlighting the topics and mentors that shaped the FTM community in San Francisco from 1976 to 2009. The central items in the exhibit appeared in Gateway: the newsletter of Golden Gate…
The History of the Alice B. Toklas LGBT Democratic Club, San Francisco, California, 1971-2004, by Nathan Purkiss

This is a short history of the Alice B. Toklas Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender Democratic Club, published originally on OutHistory in 2013. This history explains how the club got started in San Francisco, California as the first registered…
Lesbians in the Twentieth Century, 1900-1999, by Esther Newton and Her Students

"Lesbians in the Twentieth Century" was created by Professor Esther Newton and the graduate and undergraduate students in the seminar on "Lesbian History" that she taught in fall of 2006 at the University of Michigan. Newton and…
Groovy Guy Contest, Los Angeles, 1968-1991, by Jeff Auer

Brief history (with many pictures) of a gay pageant that ran from 1968 to 1991 in Los Angeles.
Out and Elected in the USA: 1974-2004, by Ron Schlittler

A survey, through black and white portraits and texts, of many pioneering openly lesbian, gay, bisexual, or transgender individuals elected to public office in the United States beginning in the 1970s. For information on a touring exhibit version of…
Teaching "Straight" Gay and Lesbian History (2007), by Nancy C. Unger

This essay, which reflects on teaching gay and lesbian history at San Francisco State University and Santa Clara University, was first published in The Journal of American History 93, no. 4 (March 2007): 1192-1199. Copyright Organization of American…
Polk Street History Project, 1950s-2010s, by Joey Plaster

Polk Street’s history through the lens of neighborhood change in the early twenty-first century. Polk Street was San Francisco’s premier gay male center in the 1960s and 1970s. First published on OutHistory in 2012.
Queer Youth: On Campus and in the Media, by Sharon Ullman and Her Students

This exhibit focuses on LGBTQ+ activism on college and high school campuses and representations of queer youth in the media. The project was researched by Bryn Mawr and Haverford students for a class on the history of sexuality in America, taught by…