Long before the modern era of gay marriage, LGBTQ individuals have committed to each other throughout history. Scholars have extensively documented these unions, shedding light on diverse expressions of love. One seminal work, Judy Grahn’s Another Mother Tongue (1984, Beacon Press), unveiled […]
In August 1979, gay rights activist Tom Brougham proposed the new concept of “domestic partnership” to counter the inequality of job benefits being exclusive to heterosexual couples. Tom and a dedicated group of LGBTQ activists, including my husband Leland Traiman, championed the […]
May is for mother’s day, so I am deviating from my LGBTQ Genealogy series this month to share some of my own genealogical writing. This is a profile of my maternal great grandmother, Antonia. I was lucky to meet her a couple of times. Once when […]
The stereotype of the gay hairdresser isn’t merely a cliché; it reflects a profession that not only attracts some men but also serves as a pragmatic choice for survival. For many homosexuals, the risk of being discovered meant potential job loss or professional ostracism—a reality […]
The inaugural gay pride marches, held in 1970 on the anniversary of the Stonewall Riots, in New York, Los Angeles, San Francisco, and Chicago, marked a pivotal moment in LGBTQ history. Why did those early marches, now known as Pride Parades, happen in these […]
In response to a reader’s inquiry, this blog post delves into the nuanced task of documenting transgender family members in genealogy. It emphasizes the need for sensitivity and respect while guiding appropriate terminology and their inclusion in family narratives.
In genealogy, the common practice of documenting women with […]
The history of LGBTQ folk in the U.S. military is intricate and spans various eras. Here, we will explore key historical events and share the stories of two significant service members. For genealogists, understanding where to find military records is crucial.
In previous discussions about locating LGBTQ individuals in newspapers, we explored the possibility that an ancestor might have been arrested in a police raid on a gay club or charged with offenses related to their sexual orientation. Some men were arrested for having sex in public […]
In August I was fortunate to land a job with My China Roots. They needed a San Francisco Bay Area local willing to scan in Chinese genealogy books that would then be posted on their website. My China Roots, founded by Huihan Lie in 2012, aims to […]
