North American Conference of Homophile Organizations
Encyclopedia
The North American Conference of Homophile Organizations (NACHO, pronounced "Nay-Ko") was an umbrella organization for a number of homophile
organizations. Founded in 1966, the goal of NACHO was to expand coordination among homophile organizations throughout the Americas. Homophile activists were motivated in part by an increase in mainstream media attention to gay issues. Some feared that without a centralized organization, the movement would be hijacked, in the words of founding member Foster Gunnison, Jr., by "fringe elements, beatniks, and other professional non-conformists".
, Washington, D.C.
and Philadelphia.
co-founder Del Martin
and other women were growing increasingly suspicious that men could understand the needs of lesbians. Mattachine New York
leader Dick Leitsch, who had influence within Mayor John Lindsay's
administration, did not want to give up his organization's independence.
NACHO was hampered by internal conflicts from the beginning. Fault lines formed over membership, credentialing and voting rights, with East coast organizations favoring a more formal membership process and West coast activists wishing for a more casual members policy. Mattachine New York and ONE, Inc.
refused to attend the 1967 conference in New York because of these concerns. Lesbians were also concerned that the male-dominated leadership was giving short shrift to women-specific issues.
, held just weeks after the contentious Democratic National Convention
, NACHO adopted the slogan "Gay is Good". Coined by founding member Frank Kameny, the slogan was modeled on the African American slogan "Black is Beautiful."
NACHO also adopted a five-point Homosexual Bill of Rights at its 1968 meeting:
had occurred and the momentum and energy of the gay movement had shifted to more radical groups like the Gay Liberation Front
and the Gay Activists Alliance. Older members and younger, more radicalized activists struggled at the 1970 convention in San Francisco, particularly over the issues of membership and participation, which led to the gay liberationists' taking control of the convention. The younger activists passed a series of resolutions supporting the Black Panthers
and Women's Liberation
and the immediate withdrawal of troops from Vietnam
. NACHO never recovered from the conflict and the 1970 convention was the organization's last. Gay Sunshine magazine declared the convention "the battle that ended the homophile movement".
Homophile
The word homophile is an alternative to the word for homosexual or gay. The homophile movement also refers to the gay rights movement of the 1950s and '60s....
organizations. Founded in 1966, the goal of NACHO was to expand coordination among homophile organizations throughout the Americas. Homophile activists were motivated in part by an increase in mainstream media attention to gay issues. Some feared that without a centralized organization, the movement would be hijacked, in the words of founding member Foster Gunnison, Jr., by "fringe elements, beatniks, and other professional non-conformists".
Origins
NACHO was modeled on an earlier organization, the East Coast Homophile Organizations (ECHO), that formed in 1963 to coordinate the activities of homophile groups from New York CityNew York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
, Washington, D.C.
Washington, D.C.
Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly referred to as Washington, "the District", or simply D.C., is the capital of the United States. On July 16, 1790, the United States Congress approved the creation of a permanent national capital as permitted by the U.S. Constitution....
and Philadelphia.
Planning conference
The first meeting of the organizations that would become NACHO was held over the weekend of February 18, 1966 in Kansas City under the title "National Planning Conference of Homophile Organizations". Fourteen organizations were represented at the conference, which was held in Kansas City as a centralized location. Over the next six months, the attendees set up a legal defense fund and started a newsletter.First meetings
NACHO was officially formed at a meeting held in San Francisco six months after the planning conference. Although Gunnison delivered a keynote speech calling for a strong centrally-controlled structure, others in attendance were wary. Daughters of BilitisDaughters of Bilitis
The Daughters of Bilitis , was the first lesbian rights organization in the United States. It was formed in San Francisco in 1955, conceived as a social alternative to lesbian bars, which were considered illegal and thus subject to raids and police harassment...
co-founder Del Martin
Del Martin and Phyllis Lyon
Dorothy Louise Taliaferro "Del" Martin and Phyllis Ann Lyon were an American lesbian couple known as feminist and gay-rights activists...
and other women were growing increasingly suspicious that men could understand the needs of lesbians. Mattachine New York
Mattachine Society
The Mattachine Society, founded in 1950, was one of the earliest homophile organizations in the United States, probably second only to Chicago’s Society for Human Rights . Harry Hay and a group of Los Angeles male friends formed the group to protect and improve the rights of homosexuals...
leader Dick Leitsch, who had influence within Mayor John Lindsay's
John Lindsay
John Vliet Lindsay was an American politician, lawyer and broadcaster who was a U.S. Congressman, Mayor of New York City, candidate for U.S...
administration, did not want to give up his organization's independence.
NACHO was hampered by internal conflicts from the beginning. Fault lines formed over membership, credentialing and voting rights, with East coast organizations favoring a more formal membership process and West coast activists wishing for a more casual members policy. Mattachine New York and ONE, Inc.
ONE, Inc.
ONE, Inc. was an early gay rights organization in the United States.The idea for a publication dedicated to homosexuals emerged from a Mattachine Society discussion meeting held on October 15, 1952....
refused to attend the 1967 conference in New York because of these concerns. Lesbians were also concerned that the male-dominated leadership was giving short shrift to women-specific issues.
Slogan and the Homosexual Bill of Rights
At its 1968 conference in ChicagoChicago
Chicago is the largest city in the US state of Illinois. With nearly 2.7 million residents, it is the most populous city in the Midwestern United States and the third most populous in the US, after New York City and Los Angeles...
, held just weeks after the contentious Democratic National Convention
1968 Democratic National Convention
The 1968 Democratic National Convention of the U.S. Democratic Party was held at the International Amphitheatre in Chicago, Illinois, from August 26 to August 29, 1968. Because Democratic President Lyndon Johnson had announced he would not seek a second term, the purpose of the convention was to...
, NACHO adopted the slogan "Gay is Good". Coined by founding member Frank Kameny, the slogan was modeled on the African American slogan "Black is Beautiful."
Black is beautiful
Black is beautiful is a cultural movement that began in the United States of America in the 1960s by African Americans. It later spread to much of the black world, most prominently in the writings of the Black Consciousness Movement of Steve Biko in South Africa...
NACHO also adopted a five-point Homosexual Bill of Rights at its 1968 meeting:
NACHO resolved to send questionnaires to political candidates to determine their positions on the points of the Bill. A number of lesbian organizations, still concerned over the lack of attention being paid to their issues, refused to participate. Daughters of Bilitis president Rita LaPorte compared the relationship between NACHO and DOB to a husband and wife. Heterosexual women, she argued, dissipated their energy through their marriages; similarly, lesbians risked dissipating their energy should DOB become a surrogate "wife" to what she perceived as the male-centered NACHO.
- Private consensual sex between persons over the age of consent shall not be an offense.
- Solicitation for any sexual acts shall not be an offense except upon the filing of a complaint by the aggrieved party, not a police officer or agent.
- A person's sexual orientation or practice shall not be a factor in the granting or renewing of federal security clearances or visas, or in the granting of citizenship.
- Service in and discharge from the Armed Forces and eligibility for veteran's benefits shall be without reference to homosexuality.
- A person's sexual orientation or practice shall not affect his eligibility for employment with federal, state, or local governments, or private employers.
Final conferences
NACHO held two additional conferences in 1969 and 1970, but by this time the Stonewall riotsStonewall riots
The Stonewall riots were a series of spontaneous, violent demonstrations against a police raid that took place in the early morning hours of June 28, 1969, at the Stonewall Inn, in the Greenwich Village neighborhood of New York City...
had occurred and the momentum and energy of the gay movement had shifted to more radical groups like the Gay Liberation Front
Gay Liberation Front
Gay Liberation Front was the name of a number of Gay Liberation groups, the first of which was formed in New York City in 1969, immediately after the Stonewall riots, in which police clashed with gay demonstrators.-The Gay Liberation Front:...
and the Gay Activists Alliance. Older members and younger, more radicalized activists struggled at the 1970 convention in San Francisco, particularly over the issues of membership and participation, which led to the gay liberationists' taking control of the convention. The younger activists passed a series of resolutions supporting the Black Panthers
Black Panther Party
The Black Panther Party wasan African-American revolutionary leftist organization. It was active in the United States from 1966 until 1982....
and Women's Liberation
Feminist movement
The feminist movement refers to a series of campaigns for reforms on issues such as reproductive rights, domestic violence, maternity leave, equal pay, women's suffrage, sexual harassment and sexual violence...
and the immediate withdrawal of troops from Vietnam
Vietnam War
The Vietnam War was a Cold War-era military conflict that occurred in Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia from 1 November 1955 to the fall of Saigon on 30 April 1975. This war followed the First Indochina War and was fought between North Vietnam, supported by its communist allies, and the government of...
. NACHO never recovered from the conflict and the 1970 convention was the organization's last. Gay Sunshine magazine declared the convention "the battle that ended the homophile movement".
Legacy
Although its existence was brief, NACHO helped start dozens of local gay groups across the country and issued position papers on a variety of LGBT-related issues. It organized national demonstrations, including a May 1966 action against military discrimination that included the country's first gay motorcade. Through its legal defense fund, NACHO challenged anti-gay laws and regulations ranging from immigration issues and military service to the legality of serving alcohol to homosexuals.See also
- List of pre-Stonewall LGBT actions in the United States
- List of LGBT rights organizations
- Timeline of LGBT historyTimeline of LGBT historyThe following is a timeline of lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender related history.-9660 to 5000 BC:* Mesolithic rock art in Sicily depicts phallic male figures in pairs that have been interpreted variously, including as depictions of homosexual intercourse.-7000 to 1700 BC:*Among the sexual...
Works cited
- Andryszewski, Tricia (2000). Gay Rights. Twenty-First Century Books. ISBN 0761315683.
- Armstrong, Elizabeth A. (2002). Forging Gay Identities: Organizing Sexuality in San Francisco, 1950-1994. Chicago, University of Chicago Press. ISBN 0226026949.
- Bianco, David (1999). Gay Essentials: Facts For Your Queer Brain. Los Angeles, Alyson Books. ISBN 1555835082.
- Blasius, Marc and Shane Phelan, eds. (1997). We Are Everywhere: A Historical Sourcebook of Gay and Lesbian Politics. New York, Routledge. ISBN 0415908590.
- Eisenbach, David (2006). Gay Power: An American Revolution. Carroll & Graf Publishers. ISBN 0786716339.
- Fletcher, Lynne Yamaguchi (1992). The First Gay Pope and Other Records. Boston, Alyson Publications. ISBN 1555832067.
- Kaiser, Charles (1997). The Gay Metropolis 1940–1960. Boston, Houghton Mifflin Company. ISBN 0395657814.
- Moyer, Bill, Joann Macalister, Mary Lou Finley and Steve Soifer (2001). Doing Democracy: The MAP Model for Organizing Social Movements. New Society Publishers. ISBN 0865714185.
- Witt, Lynn, Sherry Thomas and Eric Marcus, eds. (1995). Out in All Directions: The Almanac of Gay and Lesbian America. New York, Warner Books. ISBN 0446672378.
External links
- Resources on Regional Homophile/LGBT Organizations in the 1960s
- Political correspondence from the papers of Frank Kameny