Hampton Roads LGBTQ+ Community Snapshot 1977

By Mel Frizzell, Special Collections Assistant

In December 1977, the Norfolk Unitarian-Universalist Gay Caucus (UUGC) undertook what may have been the first survey of the LGBT community in Hampton Roads.  The survey was not intended to be a complete profile of the local gay community as those surveyed tended to be either bar goers or those active in the local Gay and Lesbian community.  Questions pertaining to the local Trans community were virtually non-existent.  Surveys were distributed in local gay bars including the Cue, the Nickelodeon, the Late Show, the Ritz, and at UUGC meetings.  The results of the survey were released in the January, February, March, and April 1978 issues of Our Own Community Press.  The January issue gave an overview of results.  The February issue featured the results as they pertained to women / Lesbians who took the survey.  The March issue shared results pertaining to gay and bisexual men.  The April issue highlighted comments made by survey respondents.

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According to the February 1978 issue of Our Own, “The typical woman who filled out one of the UUGC questionnaires… is between 18 and 24 years old, lives in Norfolk, is registered to vote, Protestant, makes between $5-10,000, rents, has some college education, considers herself exclusively gay, attends a gay bar once a week, and always feels good about her sexuality.”  A total of 86 women responded to the survey.  

Older women were not well represented in the survey.  69% of the women surveyed were under the age of 24, and an additional 29% were between the ages of 25 and 34.  Only 2% of the women were over the age of 34.  Half of these respondents were from Norfolk, and the rest were from other cities in Hampton Roads with ten respondents from outside the area.  Two thirds of these women were registered to vote.  Political affiliation was not reported, but religious affiliation was.  Nearly half of the respondents identified as Protestant.  Nearly a third were Catholic.  A smaller number identified as Jewish, not religious, or other (including two who identified as witches).  48% of respondents had an annual income between $5,000-10,000, 29% had an income less than $5,000 a year.  Very few respondents made over $15,000 a year.  Only 14% of these women owned their own home; 68% rented, and 18% lived with parents, with a lover, or had other living arrangements.  Only 14% of these women had college degrees, 43% had completed some college, 35% had only graduated high school.  A very few women had advanced degrees or had not completed high school at all.  The highest number of these women (20%) worked in service and blue-collar industries.  17.5% of respondents were students and another 17.5% worked in government jobs.  Other jobs included healthcare, education, management, clerical jobs, merchandising, and artists.  Very few women surveyed were lawyers, journalists, engineers, or housewives.  8% of those women surveyed were unemployed.

Of the women surveyed, 8% claimed to be exclusively heterosexual, 44% considered themselves exclusively homosexual, and others claimed varying degrees of bisexuality.  Most of these women (84%) always or usually felt good about their sexuality.  14% had mixed feelings about their sexuality, and only one woman usually felt bad about her sexuality.   No one claimed to always feel bad about their sexuality.  36% of the women surveyed went to gay bars once a week, 28% went to bars only once a month, and 25% went to gay bars more than once week.  Only 22% of these women belonged to gay organizations, while 28% belonged to social groups; 20% to professional groups; 15% to political groups; 38% to special interest groups; and 13% to religious groups.  26% of the women surveyed did not belong to any organization at all. 

Popular LGBT publications among women were Our Own Community Press, The Advocate, Gay Blade, and Gay Community News.  Only a small number read Lesbian publications such as Lesbian Connection or Lesbian Tide.

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A total of 440 men answered the survey.  This was over five times the response rate for women.  The typical profile for men answering the survey was very similar to that of the women.  The typical man answering the survey lived in Norfolk, was between the ages of 18 and 24, was registered to vote, rented their housing, had some college education, was Protestant, had an annual income of $5,000-10,000, considered themselves exclusively gay, and always felt good about their sexuality. 

While the “typical” snapshot of respondents was similar, actual percentages varied and there were some differences between the men and women surveyed.  The typical male (49.2%) went to gay bars more than once a week whereas the largest number of women (36%) only went to bars once a week.  There was a larger number of men than women over the age of 24 who responded to the survey.  There were more men over the age of 35 and even some over the age of 50.  Men were less likely to have a religious affiliation at all, or if they did – to have a non-Christian affiliation (Jewish, Humanist, Buddhist, Moslem, B’ai H’ai, etc.).  Twice as many men than women had completed college, and men generally had higher incomes.  Women were slightly more likely be registered voters.  Men were more likely to consider themselves “exclusively” homosexual than women, but women tended to overall to feel better about their sexuality.  Men were more likely to belong to a gay organization or conversely to no organization at all than were women.

As for men’s statistics, 51.5% of men lived in Norfolk.  34.5% lived in other Hampton Roads cities.  The remainder came from other places in Virginia, Washington DC, or from out of state.  54% of men were aged 18-24; 34% were 25-34; 9% were 35-49; and 1.5% were over age 50.  45% of male respondents identified as Protestant; 25.5% as Catholic; 15.0% as none; 7.0% as other; and 4.5% as Jewish.  The highest percentages of men worked in either government or service jobs (16.2% and 16.4% respectively).  Other higher percentage occupations included students (9.7%); management (7.7%); healthcare (7.4%); merchandising (7.4%); and other professionals (7.0%).  Only 4.9% of men surveyed were unemployed.  65% of male respondents were registered to vote.   37% of those men surveyed had annual incomes between $5,000-10,000; 23.3% had annual incomes of $10,000-15,000; 17% had incomes over $15,000; and 20% had incomes under $5,000.  29.8 percent of the men surveyed had college degrees; 35.6% had some college; 27.8% had only graduated high school; and 5.9% did not have a high school diploma.  52.5% of men rented their housing; 21.0% owned their own home; and 23.5% had other living arrangements.

Of the men surveyed, 43.6% identified exclusively homosexual; 1.6% claimed to be exclusively heterosexual; and the rest claimed varying degrees of bisexuality.  79.6% of the men always or usually felt good about their sexuality; 18.7% felt both good and bad about their sexuality; and only 1.1% usually or always felt bad about their sexuality.  Nearly half the men surveyed (49.2%) visited gay bars more than once a week; 25.5% visited gay bars weekly; 18.2% visited gay bars once a month or less; and of these only .7% never visited gay bars.  26% of the men surveyed belonged to gay organizations; 37.3% belonged to no organizations at all.  Men also took part in professional organizations (27.3%), social organizations (26.2%), political organizations (14.1%), religious organizations (18.0%), and special interest groups (24.4%).

Popular publications among men included Our Own Community Press, The Advocate, In Touch, Gay Blade, Blueboy, Cruise, Gay Community News, Christopher Street, Gay Times, Eagle, GPU News, Drummer, Mandate, Playgirl, and After Dark.

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Stot, 2013: https://www.advocate.com/arts-entertainment/pride/2013/06/12/photos-remembering-birth-pride

While the demographics created a snapshot of LGBT bar goers and those active in the local LGBT community in 1977, the most revealing and sometimes entertaining portion of the survey were open-ended responses to the questions “What do you see as the greatest need of the lesbian/gay community of Tidewater?”  Overall themes to these questions included the need for unity and a sense of gay community; gay and straight education on gay issues; politics and legislation for gay rights; acceptance and understanding; more and better bars; and social outlets other than the bars.  

Comments included practical suggestions for the community – a Lesbian bar, live gay/lesbian music events, a gay military organization, a gay bookstore, a gay business association, an organization for aging gay men, a gay community center, and a gay church.  All of these things have come to pass in Hampton Roads (at least at some point) since the 1977 survey.  Some comments were idealistic like this one.  “For them to learn to live together.  To be friends no matter what color the person’s skin might be or what sex the person might be.  To be openminded with everything, because being gay is hard enough without fighting each other.”  Other idealistic responses included developing a unified gay/lesbian political philosophy, or ending division and labels within the community.  Some comments focused on educating the public on gay/lesbian issues, helping gay and lesbian folks to feel better about themselves, and helping folks come out of the closet.  There were also a few colorful comments by folks who obviously weren’t comfortable with segments of the gay/lesbian community at the time.  “The flaunting of homosexuality is the major problem.  The super “fags’ and ‘butch’ are what gives the rest of us bad names.”  Another respondent suggested, “More Gay Bars!… Make anyone over 40 stay out!  And have a special bar just for trolls.”  

Since 1977, hopefully at least some things have changed for the better in the Hampton Roads LGBT community.  Gay bookstores have come and gone, as have Lesbian bars.  LGBT military organizations have formed, especially at the height of the gay military ban and “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell.”  We have an organization for aging Gay men, an LGBT business organization, and an LGBT community center.  There’s an LGBT church, and even room at the annual Pride month Interfaith event for non-Christians and LGBT folks involved in non-traditional religions such as Wicca and Paganism.  We have an LGBT Pride organization, an annual Pridefest, a Pride Boat Parade, and even a whole month of local Pride events.  While not well represented in the 1977 survey, we now have organizations and events for Trans folks in our community too. 

While we may have lost some things this past year or more due to Covid, this Pride month consider all that we have gained and learned since the early days of the Hampton Roads LGBT community.  What will the Hampton Roads LGBT community be like 44 years from now?

You can browse the issues of Our Own Community Press mentioned in this blog post, as well as all other issues of Our Own, in our digital collections: https://dc.lib.odu.edu/digital/collection/ourown

The History of the “Breaking the Ice Gay and Lesbian Pride Festival” at ODU

by Mel Frizzell, Special Collections Assistant

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Our Own, January 1995, page 8: https://dc.lib.odu.edu/digital/collection/ourown

The Breaking the Ice Gay and Lesbian Pride Festival was first held February 2, 1991 in ODU Webb Center.  It was sponsored by the ODU Gay and Lesbian Student Union (GLSU) and the Hampton Roads Lesbian and Gay Pride Coalition (HRLGPC).  The event was envisioned as a winter pride event to supplement the annual Out in the Park pride picnic held each summer.  It was also a fundraiser with proceeds going toward Breaking the Ice expenses and toward the summer picnic.   The main event took place from 9:30am to 5pm and was followed by the play “I’m Positive” at 8pm and a dance in Webb Center from 10pm to 1am.  Daytime events included a showcase of vendors and organizations, as well as workshops “on healthy gay and lesbian relationships, being single, addiction, political activism, coming out, minorities, and the dilemma of gay men and lesbians in the military.”  Guest speakers that year included Robert Bray of the National Gay and Lesbian Task Force (NGLTF) who led a workshop on “The State of the Gay and Lesbian Nation: 1991” and Kate Dyer, an aide to U.S. Representative Gerry Studds (D-MA) who led a workshop on gays in the military.  Tickets to the main event were $5 in advance and $7 at the door.  Attendance to the evening play and the dance were free. 

The format stayed fairly consistent in subsequent years, though there were some changes.  The daytime hours shortened to 11am to 5pm the following year and by 1997 the main event ran from 12noon to 5pm.  Admission costs were lowered to $3 general admission and $1 for students, and only went up by $1 by the late 1990s.   Early evening events varied year to year.  Some years featured plays, most years an evening film festival, and a few years featured other entertainment.  1997 featured one act plays by ODU students, followed by country dancing performed by the OtherSiders country dance troupe, and music by local singer and songwriter Julie Clark.  1998 featured Lesbian comedian and musician Lynn Lavner and music by the Hampton Roads Men’s Chorus.  The late evening dance in Webb Center remained a fixture each year.   In 1997, there was an “All Faiths” continental breakfast held in Webb Center before the day’s other activities.

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Breaking the Ice 1995 Workshop Schedule from the ODU Gay and Lesbian Student Records, Box 2, Folder 1: https://sites.wp.odu.edu/oduwiki/2018/06/25/gay-and-lesbian-student-union-glsu/

A number of prominent guest speakers were featured over the years.   Guest speakers often represented current events related to the LGBT community.  The 1992 guest speaker was Karen Thompson who had recently been awarded guardianship of her lover Sharon Kowalski in the Minnesota Appeals Court.  Kowalski had been “severely disabled” in a car accident in 1983. Guardianship had initially been awarded to Kowalski’s parents who barred Thompson from visiting.  After nine years of court battles, Thompson finally won custody in December 1991.  The 1993 guest speaker was Crae Pridgen — a gay man who had been beaten outside a gay bar in Wilmington, North Carolina by three Marines in January 1993.  This happened only a week before his appearance at the 1993 Breaking the Ice.  In 1995, Rev. Mel White of the Metropolitan Community Church was guest speaker. White had been an Evangelical writer who ghostwrote autobiographies for televangelists such as Jerry Falwell, Sr., Pat Robertson, and Billy Graham.  White came out as gay in 1994, transferred his credentials to the gay-affirming Metropolitan Community Church, and devoted himself to serving gay Christians.  The week following the 1995 Breaking the Ice, White led a peaceful protest on Pat Robertson’s Christian Broadcasting Network in Virginia Beach.  White had requested a meeting with Pat Robertson to discuss how the televangelist’s anti-gay rhetoric was harming gay people “in the name of God.”  Robertson refused the meeting and White was arrested for trespassing.  White refused bond and fasted three weeks in the Virginia Beach City Jail until Robertson finally agreed to meet with him on March 8.  At that time, Robertson dropped the charges against White.  Guests speakers for other years included Mandy Carter of the Human Rights Campaign Fund (HRCF); Barbara Grier, CEO and Founder of Naid Press; Kerry Lobel of the National Gay and Lesbian Taskforce (NGLTF); David Perry of Virginians For Justice, and Lesbian comedian/singer Lynn Lavner. 

A variety of workshops were held at Breaking the Ice with some themes remaining consistent over the years.  Given the huge military presence in Hampton Roads, it’s not surprising that “gays in the military” was a frequent workshop theme.  Coming out was also a frequent theme, as were Lesbian and Gay relationship issues, LGBT affirming-spirituality (including alternative spiritual beliefs like Wicca), and LGBT politics and activism.  Other topics included LGBT youth, bisexuality, diversity within the LGBT community, addictions, safer sex, Lesbian and Gay Unions, LGBT legal concerns, finances, child custody, Lesbian and Gay literature, and dealing with grief.

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Breaking the Ice Photo with Caption, Our Own Community Press, March 1991, Page 1 : https://dc.lib.odu.edu/digital/collection/ourown

Each year ODU’s Webb Center cafeteria was filled with LGBT vendors and organizations.  Vendors included bookstores such as OutRight Books, Phoenix Rising, Lambda Rising, The Tidewater Women’s Bookshelf, White Rabbit Books and Things, and others.  Other vendors sold pagers, candles, clothing and jewelry, health products, and Pagan spiritual supplies, among other things.  Organizations included political and activist organizations like the Human Rights Campaign Fund, Virginians for Justice, and even People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA).   Local service organizations included Tidewater AIDS Crisis Taskforce, AIDSCare, Full Circle Hospice, and American Red Cross.  LGBT-affirming religious organizations were represented.  These included New Life MCC, All God’s Children, Dignity (Catholic), Honesty (gay Baptists), Unitarian-Universalists, Integrity (Episcopal), and Presbyterians for Lesbian and Gay Concerns.  Support, social, and recreational organizations with tables at the event included Youth Out United, Transgender Pride, Gay Games, Mid-Atlantic Amateur Softball Association, Parents and Friends of Lesbians and Gays, Primetimers, Lambda Car Club, Gay Men’s Chorus, and Tidewater Bears.

Breaking the Ice couldn’t happen without the support of its sponsors and those organizations that provided volunteers and workshop facilitators.  The two main co-hosts for Breaking the Ice were always the Hampton Roads Lesbian and Gay Pride Coalition and the ODU Gay and Lesbian Student Union (later renamed ODU Gay Lesbian Bisexual Students and Allies).  Over the years other community sponsors and supporters included: Mandamus Society, Hershee Bar, Coral Sand Motel, Don’t Tell Mama restaurant, New Leaf / Quarberg Gallery, Mitch’s Cut-ups, OutRight Books, Out of the Dark, Out and About, Out in Virginia, Our Own Community Press, New Life MCC, Mac Graphics, Virginian’s for Justice, Youth Out United, Bi-Choice, All God’s Children Church, the Unitarian Church of Norfolk, Tidewater AIDS Crisis Taskforce, Tastebuds Supper Club, Taylor Rental, B&B Exxon, and many others.

Breaking the Ice continued at ODU through the late 1990s, and possibly into the early 2000s.  The exact date of the last classic Breaking the Ice is unclear as our primary sources for the festival in the ODU Special Collections and University Archives only go up to 1998.  ODU Sexuality and Gender Alliance (SAGA) brought Breaking the Ice back to ODU in 2019.

The Humble Beginnings of Hampton Roads PrideFest

by Mel Frizzell, Special Collections Assistant

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Image from Our Own Community Press Digital Collection courtesy of ODU Libraries: https://dc.lib.odu.edu/digital/collection/ourown/

Like many events this summer, the Hampton Roads LGBT PrideFest has been postponed due to the coronavirus.  The event has been held for the last decade at Town Point Park in Norfolk with crowd sizes reaching upwards of 25,000 people.  This includes LGBT folks along with their family, friends, and allies.  Well known headliners in recent years have included the Village People, Martha Wash of the Weather Girls, Jussie Smollet, and JoJo.  There have been additional entertainers, as well as food and beer tents, vendors, and organization booths.  Related events include a boat parade along the Elizabeth River, a block party at the Norfolk Scope, and a week’s worth of Pride events and activities. These events are hosted by Hampton Roads Pride and their partners, but additional events are held by other groups and organizations throughout the month of June which is LGBT Pride Month.

While there have been Pride month events held in Norfolk since at least 1986, the first event officially connected with the Hampton Roads PrideFest was a small picnic held at Shelter #1 of Northside Community Park in Norfolk on July 15, 1989 by a Gay and Lesbian social group known as the Mandamus Society.   Approximately 200 people attended this first event.  The picnic was a potluck, and no alcohol was allowed in the city park.  Leaders of local LGBT organizations made short speeches.  Activities of the day included volleyball, kickball, frisbee, kite flying, and people watching.  For many attending, this was their first time spent among a large diverse group of LGBT folks.

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The 2nd Annual “Out in the Park” picnic was held again at Northside Park on June 24, 1990.  This time over 1,000 people attended.  The event was hosted and organized by the newly formed Hampton Roads Pride Committee – later renamed the Hampton Roads Lesbian and Gay Pride Coalition and eventually Hampton Roads Pride.  The event included food, entertainment, games, and guest speakers.  Larger name speakers were included this year including Robert Bray, director of public information at the National Gay and Lesbian Task Force and Sam Garrison, a gay activist and former commonwealth’s attorney and a former aide to Vice President Spiro Agnew.

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For most of the early 1990s, crowd sizes averaged around 1,000 attendees at the picnic jumping up to 2,000 and even 2,500 people in the later 1990s.  In 1991, the picnic moved to Mt. Trashmore in Virginia Beach.  It was co-hosted by the ODU Gay and Lesbian Student Union and held on the lawn in front of Webb Center at Old Dominion University in 1992.  In 1991 and 1992, there were related marches on the Norfolk Naval Base in support of Gay and Lesbian folks serving in the military and against the ban on gays in the military.  From 1993 to 1996, “Out in the Park” returned annually to Mount Trashmore.  The event moved back to Norfolk in 1997 to a new location at Lakewood Park.  Many folks expressed appreciation for the abundant shade at Lakewood Park which was severely lacking at Mt. Trashmore.

For many years throughout the 1990s, food such as hamburgers, hot dogs, and baked beans were provided by the Hershee Lounge, a Norfolk Lesbian bar.  Free sodas were also available.  Some years, there was even a dessert contest.  Later on, the event moved toward a food vendor format offering more variety, but cost out of pocket for picnic goers.

Entertainment during those years was mostly local though sometimes artists were brought in from other places.  Musicians and bands included Pamela Stanley; Julie Clark, Sandy Law, Melissa Reeves and Strange Brew; Mermaids in the Basement; Romanovsky & Phillips; Tom Weinberg and the Ten Percent Review; Martin Swinger; The Hampton Roads Men’s Chorus; and a variety of other acoustic, alternative rock, and dance performers. Larger name entertainers became more common in later years when sponsors helped bring in these acts.  Sometimes these larger performances were held as special concerts outside the main picnic for fundraising purposes.  Admission to the Pride picnic and the later PrideFest has always been free.  In addition to musicians, comedians and dance troupes were sometimes brought in.  Drag Queens frequently emceed the picnic and took part in the entertainment.

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During the 1990s, most speakers were local, but some years featured headline speakers.  These included Miriam Ben-Shalom, national chair of the Gay, Lesbian, and Bisexual Veterans of America; and Perry Watkins, Sgt. First Class, U.S. Army retired.  Given Hampton Roads close association with the military, speakers often spoke out against the military ban on gay service members.

Picnic activities during the 1990s included volleyball, drag races where folks would race in high heels and wigs, and local community awards.  One year, picnic goers formed a huge human rainbow triangle on the face of Mt. Trashmore.  For many years, a wine and cheese fundraiser preceded the picnic to help cover picnic costs.

How the Pride picnic evolved and grew into the annual PrideFest beyond 1990s is largely beyond the scope of this article as primary research comes from Our Own Community Press which shut down in 1998.  I can tell you that the annual Pride Picnic moved to Chesapeake City Park for most of the 2000s.  The PrideFest as we currently know it came to Town Point Park in Norfolk in 2011.  It is currently the second largest event held in Norfolk with HarborFest being the largest. 

To learn more about the history of Pride in Hampton Roads, visit Our Own Community Press Digital Collection: https://dc.lib.odu.edu/digital/collection/ourown/

Images are from the Our Own Community Press Digital Collection, courtesy of ODU Libraries: https://dc.lib.odu.edu/digital/collection/ourown/