Frank E. Kameny, Ph.D.

2006 John Fryer Award Recipient

Lecture Title: Gay, Proud, and Healthy: From Heresy to Humdrum

Franklin E. Kameny, Ph.D., was a leading figure in gay civil rights for over 40 years, helping improve the rights and public understanding of LGBTQ+ people in the United States. He fought discrimination cases, became an expert on security clearances for gay people, and helped start the gay rights movement in Washington, D.C., coining the phrase “Gay is Good” in 1968. He played a key role in major changes, including the removal of homosexuality as a mental disorder in 1973 and the passage of an early anti-discrimination law in D.C. that same year, and he also ran for Congress as one of the first openly gay candidates and later served on the D.C. Commission on Human Rights.