Summary Information
The United Records
1977-1981
- The United (Madison, Wis.)
Mss 569
0.4 c.f. (1 archives box)
Wisconsin Historical Society (Map)
Records of a gay rights group organized in May 1978 as Madison Gay Men and Lesbians United (or The United) in response to attacks on Madison, Wisconsin's equal opportunities ordinance and its protection of the civil rights of minorities, including homosexuals. Although there are some organizational records, such as minutes of meetings, correspondence, press releases, and form letters, the collection primarily consists of clippings from Madison and national papers. These are most useful as they document the Madison gay community's political organizing against Madison ministers Richard Pritchard and Wayne Dillabaugh, who led the fight against the equal opportunities ordinance; reactions to Anita Bryant's anti-gay rights campaign, and to the movies Cruising and Windows; and national gay rights and organizing in general.
English
http://digital.library.wisc.edu/1711.dl/wiarchives.uw-whs-mss00569 ↑ Bookmark this ↑
Biography/History
Madison Gay Men and Lesbians United, usually abbreviated as The United, was organized at a mass meeting in May 1978 “to affirm the civil rights of gay men and lesbians and to support in its totality” Madison's equal opportunities ordinance. Among the founders were Gridley Hall, member of the Equal Opportunity Commission; Kathleen Nichols, coordinator of the Madison Committee for Gay Rights; and Barbara Lightner of the National Lesbian-Feminist Organization. At that time the Madison ordinance, which provided protection from discrimination for all minority groups and all individuals regardless of their “sexual orientation,” was under attack by several local evangelical ministers, in particular Reverend Wayne Dillabaugh and Reverend Richard Pritchard. Opposition to the ministers' efforts was widespread throughout Madison, and the City Council refused to alter the ordinance.
In its promotion of human and gay rights, The United sponsored a number of local events designed to heighten public consciousness, such as Gay Awareness Weeks, concerts and dances; it also raised funds, supported local and state legislation to increase individual privacy, and sent participants to the 1979 National March on Washington for Lesbian and Gay Rights.
Scope and Content Note
The organizational records of The United, 1978-1980, consist of two folders of minutes of general and committee meetings, copies of outgoing and some incoming correspondence, form letters, press releases sent to local news media, and clippings from local papers regarding local events. A folder concerning national and Madison gay rights contains leaflets, form letters, and information about other activities elsewhere, primarily about preparations for the National March in 1979. Folders on Dillabaugh and Pritchard and on Anita Bryant's organization of the repeal of the Dade County human rights ordinance in 1977 consist mainly of newsclippings and journal articles, and appear to comprise The United's reference files on their activities. In addition, the file on Rev. Dillabaugh contains news accounts of his 1978 trial on a charge of battery of a student enrolled in his church's elementary school. Together, these folders document the Madison gay community's organizing in response to the perceived local threats and to Bryant's plans to take her campaign nationwide. Other folders contain newsclippings, leaflets, and press releases, produced both locally and nationally, opposing showings of the movies Cruising and Windows, which it was felt portrayed gay men and lesbians in a negative, stereotypical manner; and general newsclippings concerning gay rights and activities, literature, politics, and other topics.
Administrative/Restriction Information
Presented by The United, via Kevin Polleys, Madison, Wisconsin, 1981. Accession Number: M81-150
Processed by Susan Bertocchi and Menzi Behrnd-Klodt, May 1981.
Contents List
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Records of The United
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Box
1
Folder
1
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General Papers, 1978-1980, undated
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Box
1
Folder
2
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Press Releases and Form Letters, 1978-1980, undated
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Other Files
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Box
1
Folder
3
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Gay Rights: National and Local, 1977-1979, undated
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Box
1
Folder
4
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Re: Rev. Wayne Dillabaugh and Rev. Richard Pritchard, 1978-1979, undated
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Box
1
Folder
5
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Reactions to the Movies Cruising and Windows, 1980, undated
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Box
1
Folder
6
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Re: Anita Bryant, 1977-1978, undated
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Box
1
Folder
7-8
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General Clippings, January 1976-January 1981
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Box
1
Folder
9
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Clippings - Miscellaneous, undated
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