Finding aid to the Lesbian and Gay Lawyers Association of Los Angeles records, 1989-2011
Coll2012.183
Finding aid prepared by Jennifer Ansley
Processing this collection has been funded by a generous grant from the National Historical Publications and Records Commission.
ONE National Gay & Lesbian Archives, USC Libraries, University of Southern California
909 West Adams Boulevard
Los Angeles, California, 90007
(213) 741-0094
askone@ONEarchives.org
(c) 2013
Title: Lesbian and Gay Lawyers Association of Los Angeles records
Identifier/Call Number: Coll2012.183
Contributing Institution:
ONE National Gay & Lesbian Archives, USC Libraries, University of Southern California
Language of Material:
English
Physical Description:
3.4 linear feet.
3 archive boxes + 1 archive carton + 2 banners.
Date (inclusive): 1989-2011
Abstract: Materials relating to the activities of the Lesbian and Gay Lawyers Association of Los Angeles from 1989 to 2011, with the
bulk of materials pertaining to the 1990s. The materials include board meeting minutes, correspondence, news clippings, publicity,
information regarding organizational events (primarily programs, flyers, invitations, and event budgets), and legal briefs.
The Lesbian and Gay Lawyers Association, formerly known as Lawyers for Human Rights, was founded in 1979 and went on to be
involved in numerous cases and legislative initiatives that responded to employment discrimination against members of the
LGBT community and people with HIV/AIDS.
creator:
Lesbian and Gay Lawyers Association.
Administrative History
The Lesbian and Gay Lawyers Association (LGLA), formerly known as Lawyers for Human Rights (LHR), was founded in 1979 by Susan
McGreivy, whose work at the The Gay and Lesbian Community Services Center inspired her idea for a gay lawyers group that could
advocate for the rights of community members, and Ray Hatler, who did most of the initial organizing and served as the organisation's
first president. Their first meeting took place in the Old Spaghetti Factory on Sunset Boulevard in Hollywood, California.
The organization emerged, in part, as a consequence of battles over Proposition 6, also known as the Briggs Initiative, which
sought to ban gays and lesbians from teaching in California. The organization would go on to be involved in numerous cases
and legislative initiatives that responded to employment discrimination against members of the LGBT community and people with
HIV/AIDS, including Assembly Bill 101, a bill that was proposed in 1991, during the height of the AIDS crisis, that sought
to outlaw job discrimination against gays and lesbians. The bill was vetoed by Governor Pete Wilson, igniting a backlash from
the LGBT community that eventually led to the passage of another anti-discrimination bill, Assembly Bill 2601 in 1992.
During this same period, the Lawyers for Human Rights adopted a transitional title, Lawyers for Human Rights: The Lesbian
and Gay Bar Association, that's aim was to celebrate the new freedoms gained by gays and lesbians over the previous decade
and to better represent the organisation's membership and goals. In October 2002, at its 21st Annual Dinner, the organization
adopted its current name, the Lesbian and Gay Lawyer's Association, a move that was seen as a final "coming out" for the organization.
Today, the organisation's primary activities include making judicial endorsements, writing amicus briefs, participating in
the Los Angeles County Bar Association and State Bar Association Conferences, and providing education, networking, and social
opportunities for LGBT lawyers. Regular events include their Annual Anniversary Dinner, events at the Hollywood Bowl, the
Summer Associates Reception, and networking opportunities with other LGBT organizations.
Sources:
Lesbian and Gay Lawyers Association of Los Angeles Records, Coll2012-183, ONE National Gay & Lesbian Archives, USC Libraries,
University of Southern California
"History: Lesbian and Gay Lawyers Association of Los Angeles," http://www.lgla.net/lgla/about/ (last accessed January 22,
2013).
Conditions Governing Access
The collection is open to researchers. There are no access restrictions.
Acquisition
Donated by the Lesbian & Gay Lawyers Association of Los Angeles, represented by Rose Eustachio, August 18, 2012.
Preferred Citation
[Box/folder #, or item name] Lesbian and Gay Lawyers Association of Los Angeles Records, Coll2012-183, ONE National Gay &
Lesbian Archives, USC Libraries, University of Southern California
Processing Information
Collection processed by Jennifer Ansley, January 2013.
Scope and Contents
The collection contains materials relating to the activities of the Lesbian and Gay Lawyers Association from 1989 to 2011,
with the bulk of materials pertaining to the 1990s. The materials include board meeting minutes, correspondence, news clippings,
publicity, information regarding organizational events (primarily programs, flyers, invitations, and event budgets), and a
selection of legal briefs. The publicity and news clippings contain significant information regarding the controversy over
Assembly Bill 101, an anti-discrimination bill vetoed by Pete Wilson in 1991, the backlash from the LGBT community that resulted,
and the eventual passage of Assembly 2601 in 1992. The collection also includes news clippings and legal briefings pertaining
to discrimination against gays in the military.
Arrangement
This collection is arranged in the following series:
Series 1. Administrative records
Series 2. Events records
Series 3. Amicus committee
Separated Materials
The following newsletters have been separated from the collection and cataloged into ONE Archives' periodicals collection:
Lawyers for Human Rights Reporter, The Lesbian and Gay Bar Association of Los Angeles, 1989-1999
Tom Homann Law Association Newsletter, San Diego's Gay, Lesbian & Bisexual Bar Association, 1999
Conditions Governing Use
All requests for permission to publish or quote from manuscripts must be submitted in writing to the ONE Archivist. Permission
for publication is given on behalf of ONE National Gay and Lesbian Archives at USC Libraries as the owner of the physical
items and is not intended to include or imply permission of the copyright holder, which must also be obtained.
Subjects and Indexing Terms
Lawyers for Human Rights (California, U.S.)
Clippings (Books, newspapers, etc.)
Correspondence
Gays--Law and legislation
Homosexuality--Law and legislation
Legal assistance to gays--California--Los Angeles
Legal assistance to lesbians--United States.
Minutes
Administrative records Series 1.
1989-2011
Series Description
This series consists of materials related to the general day-to-day administrative activities of LGLA. It includes board meeting
minutes, bylaws, correspondence, endorsements, treasures' reports, retreat notes, membership records, memoranda, project reports,
newsletters, program announcements, banners and publicity and news clippings from roughly 1989 through 2011. The series also
includes records from various committees within LGLA.
Arrangement
Records from LGLA's Board of Governors and committees are at the beginning of this series. The remaining folders are arranged
alphabetically.
Box 1, Folder 1-9
Board of Governors materials
1999-2010
Physical Description:
[9 folders]
Box 1, Folder 10
Administrative assistant/mailing committee
1998
Box 1, Folder 21
Committee assignments
1992
Box 1, Folder 11
Communications committee
2009
Box 1, Folder 12
Legislation committee
1992
Box 1, Folder 13
Mediation/dispute resolution services (DRS) committee
1992
Box 1, Folder 14-16
Membership committee
1992-2009
Physical Description:
[3 folders]
Box 1, Folder 17
Law student committee
2000
Box 1, Folder 18
Treasurer reports
2009-2010
Box 1, Folder 19
Administrative assistant search, Pitney Bowes
1999
Box 1, Folder 22
Corporate sponsorship, newsletter
1997
Box 1, Folder 23
Co-president correspondence
2009-2010
Box 1, Folder 25-28
Destouet, Maurice
1998
Physical Description:
[4 folders]
Box 1, Folder 33-35
Law Notes
1999-2000
Physical Description:
[3 folders]
Box 1, Folder 38
Littleton, Chris
1993-1997
Box 1, Folder 31
Los Angeles County Bar Association affiliate status
1999
Box 1, Folder 32
Los Angeles Police Commissioners report on Los Angeles civil unrest
1992
Box 1, Folder 40
Membership legal recruiting coordinator
1992
Box 1, Folder 42
Membership survey project
1992
Box 1, Folder 45
Newsletter information and sources, advertisers
1997-1998
Box 1, Folder 46
Newsletter materials and program announcements
1989-1993
Box 2, Folder 1
Newsletter materials and program announcements
1989-1993
Box 2, Folder 2
Newsletter correspondence
1999-2000
Box 2, Folder 3
No on Knight endorsement form
2000
Box 2, Folder 4-5
Officer elections
1991-1992
Physical Description:
[2 folders]
Box 2, Folder 7-8
Public relations and publicity
1999-2009
Physical Description:
[2 folders]
Box 2, Folder 9-18
Publicity and news clippings
1990-1992
Physical Description:
[10 folders]
Box 2, Folder 19
Queer defense project
1991
Box 2, Folder 20-24
Retreat notes and material
1991-2011
Physical Description:
[5 folders]
Box 2, Folder 26-27
Scholarships
2000
Physical Description:
[2 folders]
Box 2, Folder 28
Statements to Rodney King beating verdicts
1992
Box 2, Folder 33-34
Website
2000
Physical Description:
[2 folders]
Events records Series 2.
1990-2011
Series Description
This series contains programs, invitations, meeting minutes, budgets, memoranda, flyers and other publicity related to events
taking place between 1992 and 2011 that were organized or co-sponsored by LGLA. In particular, the series contains materials
pertaining to LGLA's Annual Awards and Installation Dinners, and Summer Associates Receptions.
Arrangement
Records related to LGLA's annual installation/awards dinner events are at the beginning of this series. The remaining folders
are arranged chronologically.
Box 2, Folder 36-51
Annual award and installation dinners
1992-2009
Physical Description:
[16 folders]
Box 3, Folder 1-3
Annual award and installation dinners
1999-2011
Physical Description:
[3 folders]
Box 3, Folder 4-6
Programs-conference
1990-1992
Physical Description:
[3 folders]
Box 3, Folder 7
Los Angeles County Bar Association (LACBA) affiliates meeting
1992
Box 3, Folder 8
Programs committee meetings
1992
Box 3, Folder 12
Event flyers, mailings
1999
Box 3, Folder 13-14
Hollywood Bowl
1999
Physical Description:
[2 folders]
Box 3, Folder 17-18
Sheila Kuehl event
1999
Physical Description:
[2 folders]
Box 3, Folder 19
Southwestern Bar Association fair
1999
Box 3, Folder 20-21
Summer associates reception
1999-2000
Physical Description:
[2 folders]
Box 3, Folder 22
University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) Bar Association Day
1999
Box 3, Folder 23
Co-sponsorship of other events
2000
Box 3, Folder 25
MCBA dinners, calendar
2000
Box 3, Folder 26
Year 2000 calendar of events
2000
Amicus committee Series 3.
2002-2010
Series Description
This series contains amicus briefs prepared by the Lesbian and Gay Lawyers Association of Los Angeles' Amicus Committee. The
amicus briefs contained in this series pertain to Sharon S. v. Superior Court of San Diego, John Geddes Lawrence and Tyrone
Garner v. State of Texas, John Hensala v. Department of the Air Force, and Kristine Renee H. v. Lisa Anne R. Additionally,
the series contains Amicus Committee correspondence and memoranda from 2002 to 2010.
Arrangement
This series is arranged chronologically.
Box 3, Folder 28
Supreme Court of California Sharon S. v. Superior Court of San Diego
2002
Box 3, Folder 29
Supreme Court of the United States John Geddes Lawrence and Tyron Garner v. State of Texas
2002
Box 3, Folder 30-35
United States Court of Appeals 9th Circuit John Hensala v. Department of the Air Force
2002
Box 4, Folder 1-2
United States Court of Appeals 9th Circuit John Hensala v. Department of the Air Force
2002
Box 4, Folder 3-5
Supreme Court of California Kristine Renee H. v. Lisa Ann R.
2004
Box 4, Folder 7
Amicus committee records
2010