Robot taunting gay pride san diego
AIDS united the LGBTQ community to fight the disease through the 1990’s, and then the fight for marriage equality united us in the 2000’s. With their deaths and the deaths of other people who were dying of AIDS, the tone of our parades shifted to one of anger and demonstrations as we united and marched for action from our government in the face of the AIDS pandemic.
Sadly, both Jess Jessup and Tom Homann died of AIDS in the 1980’s but not before leaving a legacy of community service and advocacy for the social justice for all people. But the 1980’s was also the beginning of the AIDS pandemic. These allegations were in essence imposing a societal punishment- even in cases where charges were dropped.īy the 1980’s major cities around the world were commemorating the anniversary of the Stonewall riots with parades in their cities like Mexico City, Sydney, Montreal and London.
#ROBOT TAUNTING GAY PRIDE SAN DIEGO TV#
Patrons and couples could be arrested for dancing with someone of the same-sex - many who were booked and charged with the crime of “lewd conduct.” Transgender individuals and drag queens could be arrested and booked for “cross dressing.” The allegations and names of those arrested were often published in newspapers and on the evening TV news, resulting in men being outed, losing their jobs homes, and even their families. Gay and lesbian bars and nightclubs were frequently raided by the San Diego Police Department. Sadly many of those murders remain unsolved today.Īs we progressed through the 70’s, police relations remained strained.
#ROBOT TAUNTING GAY PRIDE SAN DIEGO SERIAL#
Many of these murders have similarities to serial killers operating in Sothern California which were targeting young gay men. Many of them never returned home after being sent away.ĭuring that era assaults, robberies, and even the murders of LGBTQ people were rarely fully investigated. Countless individuals were subjected to electronic shock treatments and including even inhumane treatments such as lobotomies. In that era, LGBTQ people could be sent to the State mental hospital with a stroke of a pen by a judge or by one’s parents. Prior to 1976, homosexuals in California had a very different life than we do today. That year the parade traveled through Broadway up to Fifth Avenue and then to Balboa Park with 400 participants, where we held our first rally, in which both Jess Jessup and I were honored to speak and welcome the crowd.
The City, fearing a loss or expensive litigation, relented and issued the parade permit to attorney Tom Homann. The following year, in 1975, we returned and threatened the City of San Diego with an ACLU lawsuit. Many of those marching wore brown paper bags over their heads, as shocked nearby residents and park visitors launched hate filled homophobic verbal attacks. However in order to avoid arrest for unlawful assembly- we organized and marched on the sidewalk. We marched from the Center for Social Services in a house at 2250 B Street to Balboa Park and back. The police sergeant not only refused to issue the permit but also threatened us with arrest, adding “There will never be a gay parade in San Diego,” before ordering us to leave the station. When we informed police staff why we were there, they quickly realized we were homosexuals and denied issuing us a permit. Pride in San Diego began 46 years ago when Vietnam veteran Jess Jessup, ACLU attorney Tom Homann, and I, visited the downtown San Diego Police Department to secure a parade permit for a planned “parade/gay march.” At the time I was living as a trans drag queen leading police officials at the desk to at first assume I was female.