Prettyboy

21: Ever Since, I've Been Here and There

San Francisco, CA

July 19th, 1967

Dear Mr. Rodwell,

I want to thank you, first before anything else, for your former letter. I wish to solely clarify, however, that I write to you not on behalf but as a mere member of the Vanguard Gay Liberation Youth Movement and Organization. Although, I should disclose to you that Vanguard, due to internal clashes, has as of recently dissolved. We have discussed within the organization all the ideas I mentioned to you initially, but we had no more time to take action. Most of the remaining members of Vanguard, including myself, are now working on a new project. I can tell you that we were all delighted to hear a positive response from you, a member of the Mattachine Society. 

To get back to your previous letter: concerning the living conditions here in Eureka Valley of San Francisco, it is getting ostensibly better for homosexuals, in comparison to what you described to me in your last letter, when you mentioned living in New York City as an 'overt homosexual'. That is not to say that Eureka Valley is ideal—there is so much to be done, to protect and assist homosexuals who are victimized daily, as a result of oppression. I myself have lost count of the jobs I have lost and the apartments I have been evicted from, since the day I decided to live as an openly gay man in San Francisco. A way to combat oppression is and has been numerous times in the past through unity and the showing of solidarity, hence our idea of showing the widespread support towards our community by displaying posters and buttons. For a while, the organization had been giving out posters and stickers to cafes, handing out buttons to people in the streets. And for a while, we saw no approval and no encouragement. Thankfully, this hasn't been the case for a few months now. 

Today, approximately eleven cafes in San Francisco have at least one poster hanging; eighty-two people have taken one button and at least twenty were spotted wearing one. Most importantly, this May, we ran a poll to find out how many people would vote for a candidate in the upcoming mayoral elections, one who they considered to be the epitome of an ideal candidate, who represented everything they did, but chose to be openly gay. The percentage of people who claimed an absence of bias was very small. But it did exist! So, what is the crux to this? Why do so many people care if a man chose to be with a man or a woman with a woman?

To educate homosexuals and heterosexuals toward an ethical culture is and has been our main goal in our organizations. It is fair to say that education shapes us at the core. Think about how many of all those people who would not consider voting for a candidate because of his or her sexual orientation might not have met a gay person in the course of their lives, or at least, an openly gay one. That is why educating them and letting them know that gay people exist, have a voice, and have the same needs and rights as each and every human being, is so crucial if we wish to end discrimination. That is why we shall keep on protesting. 

Those were a few words about what we do now, in Eureka, after Vanguard's disestablishment, as you asked. We are a group of fifteen people, for now, and are working on establishing a new organization. We operate a small bookshop where we also have an office. I certainly would like to meet you in person this fall, when you decide to come to California.

I hope this much information has been useful to you. If you have any other ideas, if we could assist in any way, the Mattachine Society, we would be delighted to do so.

Sincerely,

G. Way

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