Barbara Gittings, 1932-2007

Barbara Gittings, one of the founders of the gay & lesbian civil rights movement, died Sunday at age 75. In the 1950s she helped found the Daughters of Bilitis, one of the first organizations in the world for lesbian rights.

The picture at left shows Barbara picketing Independence Hall in Philly in 1965 (4 years before the Stonewall riots pushed gay liberation into the national queer consciousness.) Also picketing was Frank Kameny, an astronomer turned gay rights advocate.

Everyone in that photo risked their jobs and safety to fight for dignity and an end to discrimination.

A short obit.