Affirmation: Gay & Lesbian Mormons

Dave Melson

Affirmation is Turning Thirty!

by Dave Melson
June 2007

On the 11th of this month, Affirmation will be thirty years old. A lot has happened in the past thirty years, and this October in the District of Columbia, we plan to celebrate it all.

In 1977, Jimmy Carter was in his first year in the White House, America was getting over its hangover from the Vietnam War, and a virus was just starting to form that five years later would mutate and cause something know as GRID (gay-related immune deficiency) or “the gay cancer,” and later be called AIDS. It was 15 years since Illinois had become the first state to decriminalize homosexual acts between consenting adults in private, and it was eight years after the Stonewall riots. There was still much controversy over the decision four years earlier in 1973 by the American Psychiatric Association to remove homosexuality from its list of recognized mental disorders.

In 2007, Jimmy Carter has told us what he thinks of the sitting President, and we are in another war. We are learning to control, if not yet cure, HIV and AIDS, and one of the leading institutions in that field, the Whitman-Walker Clinic, will be participating in Affirmation’s 30th conference. Today, out LGBT police officers serve proudly, and one of them will be speaking at our October conference. Back then, most people considered lesbians and gays to be mentally ill, today we are able to be legally married—in one state and several other countries, at least—and a half dozen of the leaders in that battle are coming to Washington to tell you about it.

In 1977, Lani Graves was a young mother with a house full of kids and was a member of the Mormon Tabernacle Choir. This fall, Lani and her husband Robert will tell you how proud they are of their son and his partner and why they don’t sing in the choir any more.

In 1977, a young divinity student in New Hampshire was living with the wife that he had married in Peterborough five years earlier and his two baby daughters. This fall, Gene Robinson will share with you the day when he returned to Peterborough, New Hampshire, with his former wife, his daughters, and his partner of then fourteen years, Mark, to be ordained as the Episcopal Bishop of New Hampshire.

In 1977, Carol Lynn Pearson was the epitome of “Mormon royalty.” Poet, playwright, author. She was one of the biggest selling authors at the corner Deseret Books. You won’t find her at Deseret Books today, but you will find her off-Broadway and probably on your own bookshelf, and you will find her in Washington this October at the Affirmation Conference.

In 1977, the members of Affirmation used assumed names; it was generally understood that it would not be safe to use their real names. Two years later, Affirmation and its members gained mainstream national publicity for the first time while participating in the March on Washington for Gay Rights. The march took place on the National Mall in September of 1979. In October of 2007, Affirmation returns again, meeting on Capital Hill, just off the National Mall and within the shadow of the U. S. Capitol Building.

Thirty years ago, BYU officials tried to track down and harass and persecute LGBT students, in 2007… OK, so it seems as though some things don’t change very much. But there are people putting themselves on the line to help bring change about a little faster. The BYU Soulforce riders will be sharing their experiences with us at this October’s conference.

Some of you attending this year’s Affirmation Conference in Washington, D.C., were not alive in 1977, and you may even be attending your very first conference. Some of you have been around Affirmation from almost the very beginning. In any case, Affirmation has never been stronger. The caliber of leaders addressing an Affirmation conference has never been greater. This is Affirmation’s birthday party, our family reunion, our homecoming. Along with some incredible speakers and presenters, we have some fantastic entertainment, starting with a special performance by the D.C. Cowboys, and the day-time shopping and culture and the night-time sights and entertainment of one of America’s most gay and gay-friendly cities.

Our world has changed a lot in the past thirty years. Being lesbian, gay, bisexual, or trans has changed in unimaginable ways since 1977. Affirmation has changed and evolved over three decades. On October 5, come join us as we explore how the changes of the last thirty years have made this collection of fifty states a more perfect union and what changes would make it even better. As we head into our fourth decade, Affirmation's mission continues to include helping our members perfect not only the country but also individual and family unions for GLBTI Mormons. Join us to hear the stories and share your own!

“A More Perfect Union,” Washington, D.C., Columbus Day Weekend, October 5-7, www.affirmation.org/conference.