January 1 – Oregon
Town Council Foundation and Legacy Health system co-sponsor the first public forum on AIDS in Oregon for both health professionals and the gay male community.
August 28 - California
The first Gay Games is held in San Francisco, attracting 1,600 participants; Tom Waddell, a 6th place finisher in the 1968 Olympic decathlon, founds the first Gay Games in San Francisco. Over 1,300 gay men and lesbian athletes from 28 states and 10 nations participate. Almost 50,000 people attend the games. The U.S. Olympics Committee (USOC) sues Waddell over the name “Gay Olympics” even though they have allowed both commercial and non-profit groups to use the word Olympics in the past.
October 1 - National
Gay Men's Health Crisis was founded after reports began surfacing that a rare form of cancer called Kaposi's sarcoma was affecting young gay men. After the Centers for Disease Control declared the new disease an epidemic, Gay Men's Health Crisis was created when 80 men gathered in New York writer Larry Kramer's apartment to discuss the issue of "gay cancer" and to raise money for research.
October 5 - California
The Sperm Bank of California begins operations, the first in the country to serve lesbian couples and single women.
November 1 - California
Robert Gentry was elected as mayor and was the first openly gay public official elected in Southern California. Laguna Beach became known as a gay-friendly place to live and visit.
February 10 - Washington D.C.
President Reagan nominates an evangelist and noted anti-gay, Sam Hart, to fill a vacancy on the U.S. Civil Rights Commission. Hart withdraws as protests mount, blaming the homosexuals for “sabotaging” his nomination.
March 5 - National
The movie “Making love” is released. Although Los Angeles doctor Zack is happily married to television executive Claire, he finds himself struggling with his increasing attraction to other men. These feelings boil over when he meets a new patient, the openly gay and hedonistic Bart, with whom he begins a tempestuous and emotionally draining affair. His infidelity throws Zack and Claire's marriage into turmoil at a time when they had been discussing starting a family.
January 1 – National
Boy Goerge and Culture Club hit the music charts in the United States with “"Do You Really Want to Hurt Me?”
Jnauary 1 - California
Parents and Friends of Lesbians and Gays (PFLAG) becomes a national organization and establish the headquarters in Los Angeles under founding president Adele Starr.
February 15 - Oregon
Terry Bean, Jerry Weller, John Baker, Keeston Lowery, and Dana Weinstein start a new political organization called Right to Privacy. Later it becomes Right to Pride. Its purpose is to raise money for candidates who support gay civil rights. The organization raises $17,000 during its first Lucille Hart fund-raising dinner. It soon becomes Oregon’s major organization advocating equality for gay men and lesbians.
January 1 – National
Michael Callen is a founding member of the “People With AIDS Self-Empowerment Movement”. Michael was also a founding member of the gay male a cappella singing group “The Flirtations”
June 1 - National
The General Convention passes a resolution reaffirming the actions taken by the 1976 and 1979 Conventions, holding that “homosexual persons are children of God and are entitled to full civil rights.”
February 5 - National
The movie “Personal best” is released. Young sprinter Chris Cahill is having difficulty reaching her potential as an athlete, until she meets established track star Tory Skinner. At first the two women form a friendship as Tory and her coach help Chris with her training. Gradually, Tory and Chris start having a sexual relationship and become very close. Their intimacy becomes complicated when Chris' improvement causes them to be competitors for the Olympic team.
President Ronald Reagan
September 1 - Colorado
The Colorado Gay Rodeo Association is formed, and the very first rootin’-est, tootin’-est gay rodeo is hosted in Denver.
April 1 - National
Jerry Mills’ “Poppers” series begins in In Touch magazine, and is later featured in GAY COMIX and other publications.
November 1 - Wisconsin
Wisconsin becomes the first U.S. state to outlaw discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation in employment, housing, and public accommodations. This is the first statewide gay civil rights legislation in America. As of April 2015, just 17 states have passed legislation protecting LGBT individuals from discrimination in housing and employment.
Adele Starr
PFLAG President
January 1 – California
Cleve Jones founds San Francisco AIDS Foundation.
October 1 - National
Boyd McDonald starts publishing a series of erotic publications called “True Homosexual Experiences”. The series consists of short stories from contributors.
January 1 – National
After the New Agenda for Women in Sport Conference, leaders decline to use the word “lesbian” in action proposals emerging from the conference.
June 20 - Ohio
Cincinnati - Sunday L/G Pride Day on Fountain Square (Greater Cincinnati Gay Coalition)
August 1 - National
Craig Claiborne publishes his autobiography “A Feast Made for Laughter”, he had a bizarre childhood and adolescence in small-town Mississippi where he was mocked by schoolmates for his meek temperament and dislike of sports.
December 1 - National
McGregor’s SABRE features gay supporting cast members DEUCES WILD and SUMMER ICE beginning with #3 and the first gay kiss in mass-produced comics in #7 (December 1983).
January 1 - National
Randy Shilts publishes “The Mayor of Castro Street” a biography of Harvey Milk.
January 1 - California
Armand Boulay and Tom Brougham founded a political club in Alameda County in the Bay Area that later became the East Bay Stonewall Democratic Club.
Johnny Mathis
August 3 - Georgia
Michael Hardwick, an Atlanta gay man, is arrested in his bedroom for sodomy; the Westin Peachtree Plaza Hotel fires him from his job.
June 15 - Oregon
Neil Hutchins founds the Cascade Voice.
April 1 - National
Options magazine is launched as a newsletter for the gay community.
United States LGBT History for 1982
Michael Hardwick
January 28 - Washington D.C.
The U.S. Department of Defense issues a policy stating that homosexuality is “incompatible” with military service. Almost 17,000 gay soldiers are discharged during the 1980s, although a 1989 Defense Department study finds that gay recruits are “just as good or better” than heterosexuals.
March 1 - New York
The National Gay and Lesbian Task Force initiates a project aimed to counter the rise in violence related to homophobia in the United States.
June 1 - Ohio
Keith Prentice in the cast of “Boys in the Band” from Dayton
January 1 - National
Johnny Mathis in an interview with US Magazine talked about his sexuality and the normalcy that he has tried to find. Once the article went public he began receiving death threats which forced him back into the closet. Parents and Friends of Lesbians and Gays/Ann Arbor is founded.
January 1 - Georgia
AID Atlanta, a social service agency for people with AIDS, is formed.
James Blanchard
June 1 - National
In CAPTAIN AMERICA #270, written by J. Marc DeMatteis, Cap comes to the aid of his childhood friend ARNIE ROTH and Arnie’s “roommate” Michael.
October 1 - Michigan
Gubernatorial candidate James Blanchard expresses hesitance to support job protections for gay teachers.
State equality and discrimination bills
January 1 – Minnesota
The beating of Rick Hunter and John Hanson by Minneapolis police outside the Y'all Come Back Saloon. Hennepin County Hospital emergency room staff employees testified in court that the police called the two men "faggots" while the men were being treated for their injuries.
November 8 - Oregon
Robert Altom died after being attacked by Cecil Corrie Turner outside the former JB's Paradise Room on North Vancouver Avenue in Portland, Oregon.
September 1 - Michigan
Michigan State University fraternity suspends member John Nowak for being gay. The case brings into question the University and fraternity policies on discrimination.
January 1 - Michigan
Parents and Friends of Lesbians and Gays/Ann Arbor is founded.
Robert Altom
JB's Paradise Romm
February 1 - South Carolina
Women’s basketball coach Pam Parsons is involved in a scandal at the University of South Carolina while having a relationship with a player. The story is featured in Sports Illustrated’ s annual swimsuit issue, and Parsons sues the magazine, claiming it is untrue. Both she and her partner lie about their relationship under oath, and both are sentenced to jail time for perjury.
Copyright © Proud Scholars 2023.