America’s Dairyland: A Brie Bit Gay

Abstract

The dogmatic, authoritarian 1950’s triggered a massive emergence of movements and sub-cultures that sought to counter repressive McCarthy-era persecutions and reject mainstream American society. Openly gay and lesbian communities felt empowered by these movements and began advocating for their own equal rights, consolidated self-esteem, and group consciousness. Out of these existing queer communities, the Gay Peoples Union, a student-led organization at the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee, emerged and championed gay activism. This paper argues that while many queer organizations claimed the mantle of revolutionary sexual struggle, none embodied the gay liberation movement like the Gay Peoples Union as they utilized both mainstream and alternative media outlets to combat systemic oppression, promote political engagement, and destigmatize homosexuality. This paper uses primary sources from the Gay Peoples Union’s newspaper publications and radio program as well as secondary sources examining the gay liberation movement as a whole from different historians to serve as historical evidence.