IntraSpectrum Counseling Commemorates LGBT History Month

IntraSpectrum Counseling is proud to commemorate LGBT History Month, an annual month-long observance & celebration in October, of lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender history, and the history of the gay rights and related civil rights movements. LGBT History Month was founded in 1994 by Missouri high-school history teacher Rodney Wilson who understood that an LGBTQ-inclusive curriculum can help us all better understand our world and our differences, and help create a more respectful world. The month of October was selected because school is in session, it coincides with National Coming Out Day on October 11, and because it was the month of the first March on Washington for Lesbian and Gay Rights in 1979. LGBT History Month provides education and insight into the issues that the LGBT+ community faces. The primary aim of LGBT History Month is to teach young people about the history of the gay rights movement and to promote an inclusive modern society.

Browse the links below for more information related to LGBT History Month, as well as resources on the gay rights movement, and related civil rights movements in history. And check back often, as we’ll be adding content throughout the month – including special posts for National Coming Out Day (October 11)!

MORE INFO ON LGBT HISTORY MONTH

• LGBTHistoryMonth.com
  Celebrates the achievements of lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender icons. 31 days, 31 icons –  over 465 icons honored in all. As LGBT History Month founder Rodney Wilson and partners sought endorsements from educational groups, they faced backlash from conservatives who feared that teaching gay history would endanger youth. Gay History Month continued into the late ’90s, but lost momentum when no organization would take responsibility for its observance and financial resources grew scarce. In 2006, Equality Forum created LGBTHistoryMonth.com.
• NationalToday.com
  LGBTQ+ History Month is in October and each year we mark it with spectacular events celebrating the history and achievements of the LGBTQ+ community. When the observance was started, it mainly served as a call to action for the movement and its prosperity. But over the years, LGBTQ+ History Month has evolved into a national collaborative effort to bring extraordinary figures from the LGBTQ+ community into the spotlight.
• GLSEN.com
  For all of us, learning an LGBTQ-inclusive curriculum can help us better understand our world and our differences. For LGBTQ students in particular, it can mean feeling safer at school and hearing homophobic and transphobic remarks less frequently, according to GLSEN research. That’s why we’re sharing the resources below, from an interactive timeline and coloring book to many other classroom resources.
• American Psychological Association
  Psychology has contributed significantly to greater understanding and growing acceptance of LGBT people. Of particular historic significance was the research of Evelyn Hooker, which disproved the notion that homosexuality was a mental illness, and led ultimately to its removal from the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders. She presented the results of her research at APA’s 1956 Annual Convention.

MORE INFO ON LBGTQ RIGHTS IN US HISTORY

• PBS.org – Milestones in the American Gay Rights Movement
  ThoughtCo. – History of Transgender Rights in the U.S.
• American Bar Association – Human Rights Hero: The LGBTQ Rights Movement
• Howard Law Library – Transgender Legal Rights
  National Center for Transgender Equality  – changing policies and society, to increase understanding and acceptance
• History.com – History of Gay Rights

MORE INFO ON RELATED CIVIL RIGHTS MOVEMENTS IN US HISTORY

Civil Rights for Those with Physical & Mental Health Issues 

• Americans With Disabilities Act – Introduction to the ADA
• Disability Rights Education & Defense Fund – The History of the Americans with Disabilities Act
• Mental Health America – Mental Health Rights
• UniteForSight.org – A Brief History of Mental Illness and the U.S. Mental Health Care System

African American Civil Rights Movement

• Anti-Defamation LeagueHistory.com – Civil Rights Movement
• History.com – History of the Civil Rights Movement

Women’s Rights Movement 

• National Women’s History Alliance – History of the Women’s Rights Movement
• Ms. Magazine – 10 Things American Women Couldn’t Do Before the 1970s

Children’s Rights

• Human Rights Watch – Children’s Rights
• UNICEF – History of Child Rights

IntraSpectrum Counseling is Chicago’s leading psychotherapy practice dedicated to the LGBTQ+ community, and we strive to provide the highest quality mental health care for multicultural, kink, polyamorous, and intersectional issues. For anyone needing affirming and validating support in their healing, please click here or email us at help@intraspectrum-chicago.com.