Jorjet Harper | |
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Occupation(s) | Writer, editor, musician |
Jorjet Harper, since the 1970s, has been a writer, editor, and musician in the lesbian community. [1]
Harper has served as entertainment editor for Outlines newspaper and writes for Chicago's gay and lesbian newspaper, the Windy City Times . for ten years, she was a staff writer for HOT WIRE: The Journal of Women's Music and Culture. [1]
Lesbomania, her syndicated column, was published in a book, as well as its sequel Tales From the Dyke Side. [1]
Soon after moving to Chicago from New York City in 1979, she began writing for Blazing Star, Chicago's lesbian-feminist newsletter. [2]
Her grandmother, Minnie Buckingham Harper, was the first woman of African descent to serve in a United States Legislative body. [3]
She was inducted into the Chicago LGBT Hall of Fame in 1998. [2]
Achy Obejas is a Cuban-American writer and translator focused on personal and national identity issues, living in Benicia, California. She frequently writes on her sexuality and nationality, and has received numerous awards for her creative work. Obejas' stories and poems have appeared in Prairie Schooner, Fifth Wednesday Journal, TriQuarterly, Another Chicago Magazine and many other publications. Some of her work was originally published in Esto no tiene nombre, a Latina lesbian magazine published and edited by tatiana de la tierra, which gave voice to the Latina lesbian community. Obejas worked as a journalist in Chicago for more than two decades. For several years, she was also a writer in residence at the University of Chicago, University of Hawaii, DePaul University, Wichita State University, and Mills College in Oakland, California. She also worked from 2019 to 2022 as a writer/editor for Netflix on the bilingual team in the Product Writing department.
Windy City Times is an LGBT newspaper in Chicago that published its first issue on September 26, 1985.
Valerie Taylor was an American author of books published in the lesbian pulp fiction genre, as well as poetry and novels after the "golden age" of lesbian pulp fiction. She also published as Nacella Young, Francine Davenport, and Velma Tate. Her publishers included Naiad Press, Banned Books, Universal, Gold Medal Books, Womanpress, Ace and Midwood-Tower.
Jeannette Howard Foster was an American librarian, professor, poet, and researcher in the field of lesbian literature. She pioneered the study of popular fiction and ephemera in order to excavate both overt and covert lesbian themes. Her years of pioneering data collection culminated in her 1957 study Sex Variant Women in Literature, which has become a seminal resource in LGBT studies. Initially self-published by Foster via Vantage Press, it was photoduplicated and reissued in 1975 by Diana Press and reissued in 1985 by Naiad Press with updating additions and commentary by Barbara Grier.
The Chicago LGBT Hall of Fame is an institution founded in 1991 to honor persons and entities who have made significant contributions to the quality of life or well-being of the LGBT community in Chicago. It is the first city-sponsored hall of fame dedicated to LGBT people, organizations and community in the United States.
Mary Morten, a lifelong activist in Chicago, has dedicated her voice to advocate for marginalized communities. Morten was inducted into the Chicago Gay and Lesbian Hall of Fame in 1996. Morten served as the first African-American president of the Chicago chapter of the National Organization for Women (NOW), is an author and filmmaker on African-American lesbian experiences, and has led organizations such as the Chicago Abortion Fund and Chicago Foundation for Women. Notably, Morten directed the City of Chicago's Advisory Council on Gay and Lesbian issues in 1996.
St. Sukie de la Croix is a writer and photographer. He is most widely known for his 2012 book Chicago Whispers: A History of LGBT Chicago Before Stonewall. His works have explored the underground cultures and aspects of Chicago's LGBT community dating back to the 1670s. He has had several columns in Chicago publications, both in print and online: Outlines, Nightspots, Chicago Now, and Chicago Free Press.
The LGBTQ community in Chicago is one of the United States' most prominent, especially within the Midwest, alongside those of San Francisco and New York City, and holds a significant role in the progression of gay rights in the country. With a population of around 3 million, Chicago is the third biggest city in the US, and around 150,000 of those people identify as lesbian, bisexual, gay, transgender, questioning, or other.
Marie Jayne Kuda (1940–2016) was an American writer, lecturer, publisher, and historian of LGBT culture in Chicago. Her collection contained over 100,000 documents and ephemera and her research extended to LGBT culture from ancient times through the 20th century. She was the founder of Womanpress, published the first annotated bibliography of lesbian literature, Women Loving Women, and organized five Lesbian Writers' Conferences in Chicago.
Vernita Gray was an African-American lesbian and women's liberation activist from the beginning of those movements in Chicago. She began her writing career publishing in the newsletter Lavender Woman. After owning and operating her own restaurant for almost a decade, Gray became the LGBT liaison for the Cook County State's Attorney's office. In 2013, she and her partner became the first same-sex partners to wed in Illinois.
Renee C. Hanover was an American lawyer and civil rights advocate who practiced in Chicago. As a lawyer, she defended groups and individuals involved in civil rights cases dealing with gender, LGBT issues and race. She was part of the Women's Law Center and fought for intersectional equality. Hanover was one of the first openly gay lawyers to practice in the United States.
Lavender Woman was a lesbian periodical produced in Chicago, Illinois, from 1971 to 1976. The name Lavender Woman comes from the color lavender's prominence as a representation of homosexuality, starting in the 1950s and 1960s. It is believed that the color became a symbol due to it being a product of mixing baby blue and pink. Lavender truly hit the spotlight as a symbol of homosexuality empowerment in 1969 when lavender sashes and armbands were distributed during a "gay power" march in New York.
Adrienne J. Smith (1934–1992) was an American psychologist. She came out as a lesbian in 1973 and became one of the first openly out lesbian psychologists in the American Psychological Association (APA). She worked for reforms in the APA and spoke on LGBT rights across the country.
Margaret Ann "Peg" Grey was an American physical education teacher and sports organizer based in Chicago. She was the first female co-chair of the Federation of Gay Games. She was inducted into the Chicago LGBT Hall of Fame in 1992.
Arlene A. Halko was an American medical physicist and gay rights advocate, based in Chicago. She was inducted into the Chicago LGBT Hall of Fame in 1996.
Tracy Baim is a Chicago-based LGBT journalist, editor, author, and filmmaker. She is also a former publisher of the Chicago Reader newspaper.
Joanne E. Trapani was an American activist and politician. She was the first open lesbian elected official in Illinois when she won a seat on the village board of Oak Park in 1997, and she was inducted into the Chicago LGBT Hall of Fame in 1993.
Katherine “Kit” Duffy was the first liaison to the gay and lesbian community in Chicago. She was appointed in 1984 by Mayor Harold Washington. Her concerns at the time were AIDS education and issues related to equality and fairness. At the same time, Duffy served as the first executive director of the AIDS Foundation of Chicago.
Charlotte Newfeld (1930–2022) was an American LGBT activist.