January 1 - National
Paul Reed a writer and AIDS activist published what is accredited as the first HIV/AIDS novel “Facing It”
July 7 - Maine
Charles Howard, a 23-year-old gay man, was attacked by three teenagers while walking home from church on July 7. The assailants kicked and beat him and threw him in a stream, where he drowned. The boys bragged to their friends and were arrested. They were convicted on the charge of manslaughter, a crime that legally implies that they did not act in malice.
January 1 - National
“An Early Frost” Aidan Quinn played a Chicago attorney who goes home to tell his parents he’s gay and HIV-positive in this made-for TV-movie on NBC. It marks the first major film, on the big screen or small, that dealt with the subject of AIDS.
January 1 – National
“LEONARD & LARRY” by Tim Barela debuts in GAY COMIX #5 before appearing in later issues, The Advocate, Frontier, and three collections. The strip last appeared in Frontiers’ May 10, 2002 issue.
January 1 - National
Vincent Lardo a gay genre writer publishes his novel “The Prince and the Pretender” Nicholas Romanov, the last Russian Tsar and his family were murdered by the Bolsheviks in 1917. Now, fifty years later, Tom Bradshaw sees a young man in New York's popular west side YMCA. The young man looks remarkably like a fellow student Tom was in love with at Yale; Eric Lindenhurst Hall, dubbed Prince Eric thanks to his good looks and wealth. Tom's love was not reciprocated and never would be as Eric had died in a boating accident several years ago. Tom befriends Eric's double, Nicky, and is soon involved in a passionate affair with Eric's 'ghost.' As Tom learns more about Nicky's birth and rearing an elaborate plan begins to unfold in his mind. A plan so preposterous that every detail must be meticulously thought out if it is to succeed. Tom was going to have Nicky Pretend to be Prince Eric.
July 16 - California
BiPOL sponsored the first bisexual rights rally, which was held outside the Democratic National Convention in San Francisco. The rally featured nine speakers from civil rights groups allied with the bisexual movement.
January 1 - California
Berkeley, California became the first city in the U.S. to adopt a program of domestic partnership health benefits for city employees. West Hollywood, CA was also founded that year, and became the first known city to elect a city council where a majority of the members were openly gay or lesbian.
January 1 - National
The Wall Street Journal changes its editorial policy and now permits the use of the word gay as an alternative to the term homosexual in the news. Previously the newspaper only used gay in quotes. The New York Times and Associated Press still banned the word gay except when meaning happy or when in quotes.
January 1 - National
Ann Landers urges closeted gay men to contact DignityUSA, where they’ll “meet compassionate and understanding people there who will calm your fears and help you find a comfortable niche in society."
January 1 - Oregon
Katharine English, a lawyer and strong supporter of gay civil rights, becomes a Juvenile Court referee. While she was in private practice, she had worked behind the scenes to educate judges about issues affecting gay men and lesbians.
January 1 - California
Bisexual activist David Lourea finally persuaded the San Francisco Department of Public Health to recognize bisexual men in their official AIDS statistics (the weekly "New AIDS cases and mortality statistics" report), after two years of campaigning. Health departments throughout the United States began to recognize bisexual men because of this, whereas before they had mostly only recognized gay men.
November 1 - Oregon
Bud Clark, a strong straight ally of gay equality, is elected mayor. He campaigns and celebrates at The Dirty Duck, a gay bar. Rose Court former empress XXIV Esther Hoffman dies of AIDS. His estate helps start CHESS (Community Health and Essential Support Services) including Esther's Pantry and Todd's Closet in 1985.
December 1 - National
Ryan White, a 13-year-old hemophiliac, is diagnosed with AIDS, taking the issue out of the sole realm of the gay community to the realm of humanity at large. No longer able to ignore pleas for assistance, the government sets aside more funding for HIV/ AIDS research and resources.
July 1 - National
Episcopal Bishop of New York, a long-time supporter of gay rights, writes an editorial for the New York Times in which he condemns the Salvation Army and the Roman Catholic Archdiocese, while praising the NYC mayor in a controversy over the employment of homosexuals in publicly funded NYC church agencies. He writes “The Episcopal Church, most mainline Protestant denominations, and many Jewish groups stand strongly behind the gay community on the issue of gay rights.”
January 1 - California
BiPOL sponsored the first bisexual rights rally, outside the Democratic National Convention in San Francisco. The rally featured nine speakers from civil rights groups allied with the bisexual movement.
State equality and discrimination bills
December 4 - California
Berkeley, California, becomes the first U.S. city to extend domestic partnership benefits to lesbian and gay employees.
January 1 - National
Dynasty/ABC’s nighttime soap cornered the market on the “confused bisexual” trope: While oil heir Stephen Carrington identified as gay, he had relationships with both men and women throughout the series. He was also played by two actors: First Al Corley and then Jack Coleman.
While Steven was primarily defined by his sexuality (and struggles against it), he was generally depicted as the show’s moral center, as opposed to his scheming, wicked family.
President Ronald Reagan
January 1 - Michigan
Dignity/Tri-Cities is founded in Bay City.
April 1 - National
Freelance assassins who happen to be gay, CANNON and SABER make their first appearance in Marv Wolfman’s VIGILANTE #5.
January 1 - Oregon
Rose Court former empress XXIV Esther Hoffman dies of AIDS; his estate helps start CHESS (Community Health and Essential Support Services) including Esther's Pantry and Todd's Closet in 1985. These are first housed next to the Dirty Duck, then in the basement of the Embers.
United States LGBT History for 1984
January 1 - National
Tim Barela is a gay cartoonist, best known for his creation of the comic strip Leonard & Larry.
September 1 - Oregon
Multnomah County Board of Commissioners approves an ordinance prohibiting discrimination based on sexual orientation for county employees. Opponents threaten to force a public vote. To avoid an election, the commission repeals the ordinance in March of 1985 and replaces it with a resolution affirming the same concept.
November 1 - National
Harvey Fierstein is the narrator for “The Times of Harvey Milk” an American documentary film that premiered at the Telluride Film Festival, the New York Film Festival, and then at the Castro Theatre in San Francisco.
March 14 - California
San Francisco Department of Public Health closes the city’s bathhouses.
Ryan White
January 1 – Georgia
Chick-fil-A founds the WinShape Foundation. It is here that we guide individuals, families and organizations to a renewed hope and purpose through our ministries. The company uses this nonprofit ministry to fund anti-lgbt groups that promote segregation and conversion therapy. WinShape has donated millions to anti-gay groups, including Eagle Forum, Focus on the Family, Fellowship of Christian Athletes, Family Research Council, Exodus International, and the Marriage & Family Legacy Fund, groups which seek to provide, among other works, an anti-gay interpretation of biblical teachings about marriage and sexuality.
Chick-fil-A released a statement in July 2012: "Going forward, our intent is to leave the policy debate over same-sex marriage to the government and political arena." In March 2014, tax filings for 2012 showed the group stopped funding all but one organization which had been previously criticized, WinShape Marriage, with a stated focus on couple retreats to strengthen marriages.
January 1 - California
California’s state legislature passes a hate crimes law that includes sexual orientation.
March 14 - Michigan
Gay Wayne State University professor Philip J. Traci found murdered in his home.
Charles Howard
January 1 - Michigan
State non-discrimination bill, H.B. 5000, fails to pass legislature.
December 4 - California
Nation's First Domestic Partnership Law Passed "It took five years of lobbying by a stalwart city employee before the city of Berkeley [CA] enacted the nation's first domestic partnership ordinance in 1984. At the outset only city employees could register, and the program offered only dental I insurance coverage and leave benefits to city employees, but within a year Berkeley began including medical insurance benefits as well."
January 1 - New York
The Vatican informs Sister Jeannine Gramick and Father Bob Nugent that they must disassociate themselves from New Ways Ministry.
December 31 - National
Andrew Mattison a medical psychologist and researcher co-published “The Male Couple: How Relationships Develop”. The book started the conversation and a focus on homosexual studies. He received criticism from the anti-gay organizations because he didn’t use heterosexuals as the foundation for the homosexual studies.
June 1 - National
In June, the Unitarian Universalist Association’s General Assembly approves a Business Resolution affirming the practice of UUA clergy performing same-sex marriage ceremonies and requests that the Department of Ministerial and Congregational Services develop and distribute supporting materials.
January 1 - National
Transsexual tennis player Renee Richards’ memoir, Second Serve, is published.
June 9 - Ohio
“Gay Pride Week” (Greater Cincinnati Gay & Lesbian Coalition) Massachusetts voters reelect representative Gerry Studds, despite his revealing himself as homosexual the year before.
January 1 - National
The Coalition on Revival is founded to promote “Christian government” in the U.S. and to agree on theological tenets including anti-gay principles that fundamentalists can rally around. Board members include Tim LaHaye, D. James Kennedy of Coral Ridge Ministries, and Donald Wildmon of the American Family Association. Founder Jay Grimstead later tells The Advocate that “Homosexuality makes God vomit.”
January 1 - Washington D.C.
FBI releases a 7500 page report and admits to 30 years of monitoring LGBT support groups.
January 1 – Rhode Island
Legislation to protect gays and lesbians from discrimination is introduced in the Rhode Island legislature by Rep. Linda J. Kushner. That bill and similar legislation filed every year would fail for the next decade.
January 1 - Connecticut
The First East Coast Conference on Bisexuality was held at the Storrs School of Social Work at the University of Connecticut, with about 150 people participating.
August 1 - National
In DEFENDERS #134 written by Peter B. Gillis CLOUD is revealed to be transgender, though later revealed not to be human.
Bud Clark & The Dirty Duck
January 1 – National
John Preston an erotic writer published “I Once Had a Master and Other Tales of Erotic Love” Controversy erupted between the United States and Canada as the book was banned and confiscated at the Canadian border if it was discovered. The book was the premise for a law suite by a book store against the Canadian government regarding the freedom of press and banning literary works.
January 1 - Oregon
Winston Leyland the founder of the “Gay Sunshine Press” which is the oldest publishing house in the United States merges with Leyland Publications. The two publishers combined have printed more than 135 books and translations for the gay community.
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