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Guide to the Gay and Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation Records - San Francisco Bay Area, 1989-1993
1993-20
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Title: Gay and Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation Records - San Francisco Bay Area,
Date (inclusive): 1989-1993
Accession number: 1993-20
Creator:
Gay and Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation (San Francisco, Calif.)
Extent: 1.65 linear feet
Repository: The
Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual, Transgender Historical Society.
San Francisco, California.
Shelf location: Housed at the GLBT Historical Society
Language:
English.
The GLAAD-SFBA Records (#1993-20) were received from Jessea Greenman in 1993.
Collection is open for research.
Copyright to unpublished manuscript materials has been transferred to the Gay and Lesbian
Historical Society of Northern California.
The collection contains audio cassette tapes and VHS tapes.
[Identification of item], Gay and Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation Records -San
Francisco Bay Area, 1993-20, The Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual, Transgender Historical Society.
In 1987 The Gay and Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation/San Francisco Bay Area
(GLAAD/SFBA) was formed as a chapter of the GLAAD New York national office. However, in
March 1990 GLAAD/SFBA elected its own Board of Directors, incorporated and received
non-profit status as an independent entity.
Like its parent organization (GLAAD/USA), the San Francisco chapter was created to
identify and respond to public expressions, especially in the print and electronic media,
which stemmed from homophobia, bigotry, and misinformation about lesbians, gays and
bisexuals. The response took the forms of letter writing and telephone campaigns,
meetings with media representatives, and even public demonstrations when such actions
were required.
GLAAD/SFBA's major goal was, and continues to be, the improvement of public attitudes
about homosexuality in an effort to end violence and discrimination against lesbians and
gays, thus diminishing their social isolation nationwide. To this end, GLAAD/SFBA has had
many noteworthy accomplishments over the years.
Just to mention a few, in June 1990 GLAAD/SFBA began Project 21. This project coordinated
a successful state-wide effort to pressure the California State Board of Education to
include fair and accurate information about lesbians, gays and bisexuals in the State
health, physical education and social history frameworks. In 1992 a billboard advertising
campaign was launched, featuring an interracial lesbian couple. In the same year
GLAAD/SFBA, along with its affiliate chapters, made a concerted effort to educate
art/entertainment editors and reviewers throughout the United States, ensuring
unprecedented media focus on Hollywood homophobia for the release of the film,
Basic Instincts. The following year in 1993, GLAAD/SFBA organized a
community forum to present the homophobic propaganda film,
The Gay Agenda,and to brainstorm ways of fighting this type of Christian fundamentalist bigotry.
GLAAD/SFBA was formed as a membership organization with programs organized and run by
volunteers. It has been governed by an eight member board (with gender parity) and
several standing committees. The board members are nominated and elected by written
ballot and are voted on by the general membership. All operations are funded by private
donations.
The GLAAD/SFBA records (1.65 linear feet) document the organization's range of activities
from late 1989 to mid-1993. Any records prior to that time, and after its founding in
1987, have not been made available to The Gay and Lesbian Historical Society as of this
date. The present records are divided into six series: administrative, controversies,
projects and promotions, printed materials, and audio-visual.
Starting with the articles of incorporation and bylaws, the
Title: administrative
series
documents the formation of policies and daily operations of
GLAAD/SFBA. This is further reflected in the records of the Board of Directors. The
records for each Board meeting provide the agendas, minutes and related reports from
standing committees and other sources. However, please note that there are gaps in the
Board minutes, and many times their discussions were sparsely notated.
The San Francisco chapter expanded its operations geographically into several outlying
areas. The largest was the South Bay Division. The minutes and correspondence for that
Division can be located in two separate files in the
Title: administrative series.
Also in this series, the researcher should note the "Narrative Annual
Reports, 1991-1992" file which provide a good overview of the chapter's accomplishments
during that period.
The
Title: controversies series
deals primarily with the print and
electronic media in regard to negative portrayals and inaccurate statements about
lesbians, gays and bisexuals. In contrast, the
Title: projects and promotions series
documents GLAAD/SFBA's endeavors to improve images and foster positive
information about lesbians, gays and bisexuals (see the Historical Note for an overview
of these projects). The remaining series constitute supplemental materials to the
collection.
The folder listing contains information on the title, producer, interviewer, interviewee,
and date of audio-visual materials. These materials mainly discuss the portrayal of gays
and lesbians in the media.
Materials Removed from the Collection
The collection originally had a run of the GLAAD/SFBA newsletter,
Update,from July 1990 to December 1992. These issues were used to fill out the existing
GLHS periodical run of this publication.
The Photographs have been removed to the Photo room.
Title: Randy Alfred Papers and Tapes
Date: 91-24