“JOSÉ JULIO SARRIA, Candidate for Supervisor – City and County of San Francisco – November 7, 1961 –

“JOSÉ JULIO SARRIA, Candidate for Supervisor – City and County of San Francisco – November 7, 1961 – ‘My Platform is Completely and Eloquently Engraved for All Time on the Façade of San Francisco’s New HALL OF JUSTICE: *TO THE FAITHFUL AND IMPARTIAL ENFORCEMENT OF THE LAWS * WITH EQUAL AND EXACT JUSTICE TO ALL * OF WHATEVER PERSUASION * THIS BUILDING IS DEDICATED BY THE PEOPLE OF THE CITY AND COUNTY OF SAN FRANCISCO,*’” José Sarria platform card, San Francisco, California, November 1961. c/o @onearchives. In the wake of San Francisco’s 1959 mayoral race – during which the city’s supposed leniency toward homosexuals became a hot campaign issue – the city’s police department started an all-out siege on the gay community. In the midst of the crackdown on bars and cruising spots, José Sarria, then known for nightly drag performances as “The Nightingale of Montgomery Street” at the Black Cat Bar, entered the race for the Board of City Supervisors. In so doing, Sarria became the first openly LGBT candidate for office in the United States. In a field of thirty-four candidates vying for five seats, Sarria came in ninth, garnering some 6,000 votes; despite the loss, Sarria’s performance sent a clear message to San Francisco’s political establishment. “From that day on,” Sarria later said, “nobody ran for anything in San Francisco without knocking on the door of the gay community.” Sarria, a.k.a., The Grand Mere, Absolute Empress I de San Francisco, and the Widow Norton, went on to found of the Tavern Guild (the country’s first gay business association), the Society for Individual Rights (an early gay liberation organization), and the Imperial Court System. Sarria died of adrenal cancer on August 19, 2013. #lgbthistory #lgbtherstory #lgbttheirstory #lgbtpride #QueerHistoryMatters #HavePrideInHistory #JoséSarria (at San Francisco, California) -- source link

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