Santa Clara Valley, once an agricultural hub, is now home to the tenth largest U.S. city, San Jose. From its bars and Imperial Courts, to fighting the Religious Right, to forming ethnic organizations, to battling HIV/AIDS, to fighting for marriage equality, San Jose’s rich history informs the greater LGBTQ+ movement in the United States. This is the story of a movement set in a traditional, heteronormative suburb. Even without a central gathering place like Castro Street, or Greenwich Village, progress still happened. The archival documents, personal narratives, photographs, and videos found here tell that story.
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Alysa Cisneros
When Alysa Cisneros won election to the Sunnyvale City Council in November 2020, at age 33, she became the first ...

Bryan Franzen
The Reverend Dr. Bryan Franzen has been the senior pastor of San Jose’s Westminster Presbyterian Church since January 1, 2012 ...

Rev. Lindi Ramsden
The Reverend Lindi Ramsden, the former senior minister of the First Unitarian Church of San José, was raised in Orinda ...

Queers of a Feather
Are you an LGBTQ+ person who likes bird watching but normally does it close to home in an urban setting? ...