G3 Looks Back…
G3 Illustrated offers you this most amazing glance at some of the history that fueled Gay Louisville into becoming what it is today. We definitely have a long way to go! And it’s a good thing every now and then to take a look back and see how far we’ve actually come.
1882 Oscar Wilde visited Louisville. His favorite flower was the green carnation, and when he spoke at the Masonic Temple, several single young men wore the green carnation in their lapels. Presumably, many were gay.
1930’s The Beau Brummel at the Seelbach was not necessarily a "gay bar" but it has been said that gay men found it safe if they were discreet.
1940’s The Beaux Arts in the Henry Clay Hotel was very popular with the gay men and lesbians. It was easy to go unnoticed by the casual customer.
1950’s While the Plantation Room in the Kentucky Hotel and Gordon’s at 1001 W. Broadway catered to gay men and lesbians, it was the Downtowner on Chestnut near Fourth Street, opened by George Stinson, that became Louisville’s most successful gay entertainment operation. Did you know that even in these earlier gay establishments, same-sex dancing and touching were prohibited for fear of arrest.
1970 The Gay Liberation Front, Kentucky’s first gay group, was formed by several young men and women after a few men who had participated in the Stonewall riots came through Louisville on a "consciousness raising" mission. The group was instrumental in the beginnings of U of L’s first gay classes. They also went on to organize a community center in the Highlands, publish Kentucky’s first gay newspaper (Trash), and establish the state’s first gay counseling line.
1972 Two lesbian women invited some friends over for Bible study. Two years later they began meeting at the First Unitarian Church, where the group grew to mission status of the Metropolitan Community Church. The group was recognized as a chartered church in November of 1985.
1974 The owners of the Downtowner moved this most popular operation to Main Street after a fire took out the original establishment.
1978 Local realtor, Jack Kersey, proclaimed his homosexuality publicly on WLKY-TV News. He was the first gay man in Kentucky to do so. Kersey went on to organize several groups including the Gay and Lesbian Hotline and Community Health Trust, the leading local agency in the fight against AIDS.
1981 A gay newspaper, the Lavender Letter, had begun publication.
1982 Several banded together to found a coalition group called GLUE, Gays and Lesbians United for Equality.
1983 Lambda Louisville News joined the community as a new publication.
1984 Louisville’s own cable access gay and lesbian television show was launched.
Late 1980’s Community Health Trust established Glade House, a residence where people with AIDS could live and get financial help. It would go on to become the state’s premier community-based AIDS organization.
1989 An ordinance to prohibit discrimination against people with AIDS was passed.
The Downtowner was moved to Brook Street and changed its name to The Connection Complex, one of the largest gay clubs in the country.
1991 The Fairness Campaign, founded by the Lesbian Feminist Union of the 1970’s, was formally launched to work for a community in which all are treated equal. This same year, a hate crimes ordinance was passed extending protections to gay men and lesbians.
1999 After years of defeat, the Board of Alderman, by a vote of 7 to 5, adopted an ordinance that banned workplace discrimination based on sexual orientation. It was signed into law by Mayor Dave Armstrong.
2004 Louisville’s first Gay Pride Parade!
2005 Louisville’s second Gay Pride Parade!
Greater Louisville was burgeoned by G3 Illustrated!
2006 Louisville’s third Gay Pride Parade!
2007 Louisville’s fourth Gay Pride Parade! Be there…No Matter What!
The above information was compiled and written by DAVID WILLIAMS for The Encyclopedia of Louisville, pp 332-333.