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The Gay Women's Alternative, DC (GWA) (1981 -1993) was an incorporated social-educational non-profit organization dedicated to enriching the cultural, intellectual, and social lives of lesbians of the Washington, DC area. The GWA met every Wednesday from 8pm to 11pm at the Washington Ethical Society and served as a forum for discussion on feminist and educational topics that focused on lesbian issues.[1] Some of the programs included talks such as, "Organizing Your Finances for Succes," "Lesbian Couples: How Different are we?," "Women and Wellness: A Feminist Approach to Health Care," and many more.[2] The GWA also held dances for the community and a popular annual lesbian spring dance, the Spring Cotillion. Past speakers included the famous black poet Audre Lorde, artist Joan E. Biren, the television journalist Maureen Bunyan, and the comedian, Kate Karsten.[3]

GWA's Logo

History

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The GWA came about as a result of a series of gay political activist efforts set by the Mattachine Society of Washington (MSW), 1961. [4] On April 17th, 1965, ten members of the MSW, three women and seven men, picketed the White House to change the government's discriminatory politices against LGBT people and the police department's treatment of LGBT individuals. This public event visibly broke the barriers of "closeted existence for gay people" in DC and create hope for a non-discriminatory future.[4] As a result of the MSW efforts for change, gay women in D.C. wanted a place to get together and discuss gay rights. Lilli Vincenz, a member of MSW and an activist for gay and lesbian rights in Washington, D.C., invited women to meet every week at her home to create a safe venue for gay women to discuss gay activism and other lesbian related issues. Lilli Vincenz notes:

"I decided to have women come into our home every week for seven years, and it just become an establishment. And it was wonderful to have them come, and we had musicians come...lots of women who didn't know where to go, they didn't want to go to the bars, they just wanted to be in a place that was safe, so we provided that." [4]

Vincenz's home became known as the Gay Women's Open House (GWOH), 1971 - 1979. However, due to the lack of space, it was decided that a bigger venue was needed. This is when Maryl Kerley[5], Lilli Vincenz and two other women from New York formed the Gay Women's Alternative in 1980, providing the DC lesbian community with educational and social events that served as alternative social venues to the bar. The GWA's annual Spring Cotillion dance became the highlight of the year for lesbians in DC. [6]

Gay social life DC up until the 1980s had been historically limited to bars and the closet, but the GWA offered an alternative space for gay women to gather.[7] The GWA advertised its organization as an "alternative to the closet and alternative to the bar."[8] The organization become known as a space to meet women without the aid of alcohol or smoking.[9] On July 28, 1982, the GWA board members decided that they needed to make the public more aware that their organization was for professional women. At the end of 1982, GWA began adding the slogan, GWA "For the Thinking Women" to the event flyers that were mailed out to the community every month.[10] The meeting minutes read:

"How do we define ourselves? What audience do we appeal to? The Pride Day advertisement described GWA as an "organization for professional women and suburban women." We have not been attracting black or other minorities. We many not be getting large crowds because professional women are closeted and busier."[10]

The GWA tried to appeal to broad spectrum of women coming from various ethnic and religious backgrounds, however, the GWA consistently attracted white, suburban, professional women in their 30s and 40s. Esther Katzman, the President of the GWA in 1984, notes:

"Perhaps the reason for this is reflected in how GWA is run. The Organization has no formal membership...the group is run by a board of directors, currently comprised of seven women...a relatively high powered group, more than half hold graduate degrees, tow are lawyers, one is a therapist." [11]

In 1991, the GWA celebrated its 10 year anniversary with its community. The party featured a cake with ten candles, each representing a quality of the GWA: networking, service, women space, community, teamwork, self-esteem, education, friendship, information, and humor."[12]In 1993, the GWA was forced to shut down due to the lack of funding and the emergence of several other LGBT non-profits that provided more resources for the Lesbian community. [13]

Advertising

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The GWA placed most of their advertisements in the Washington Blade and also sent out a monthly newsletter to the mailing list. Despite the major role GWA played within the lesbian community in DC, the The Washington Blade did not cover the GWA events as well as the women would have hoped. In the letter to the editor section of the The Washington Blade, a concerned reader wrote:

"The Washington Blade has consistently been lacking in its coverage of GWA events. GWA is one of the most important social and educational networks in the Lesbian community. Your May 3, 1985 review on the GWA First Annual Conference featuring Maureen Bunyan as keynote speaker was "Sparse" to say the lease...the Blade could better show its support of the Lesbian community with more complete and consistent coverage of the GWA organization and other lesbian interests." [14]

Event Programs

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Below are sample programs that were distributed by mail to the lesbian DC community.

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References

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  1. ^ Ina B. Alterman, "Letter to Donna, Sapphire Sapphos (Black Lesbian Group), asking them to speak at GWA" Dec. 10, 1980, Rainbow History Project Archives, Box 5, MA 764, Folder 66,Kiplinger Library: Historical Society of Washington, DC.
  2. ^ "Gay Women's Alternative Schedule of Events Jan-March 1986," Rainbow History Project
  3. ^ Lisa M. Keen (12 Jan. 1984) "Audre Lorde Speaks at GWA," The Washington Blade
  4. ^ a b c Mark Meinke (13 Oct 2011), "50th Anniversary of the Mattachine Society of Washington Panel Discussion with Paul Kuntzler and Lilli Vincez,Transcript" The Rainbow History Project: Preserving Our Community's History
  5. ^ "Timeline: Civil rights/political activism, social events, and community institutions," The Rainbow History Project: Preserving Our Community's History Revised 8 Aug. 2006, p. 17.
  6. ^ Bonita Becker. (23 March 1984). "The Growing Lesbian Alternative," The Washington Blade, Vol 15 p. 12
  7. ^ Brett Beemym, "A Queer Capital," in Creating a place for ourselves: Lesbian, gay, bisexual community histories Ed. Breet Beemym. New York, N.Y. :Routledge., p. 204.
  8. ^ "GWA DC Event List," January 1981, Rainbow History Project Archives, accessed June 20, 2012.
  9. ^ Susan Ganley (5 Oct. 1990). "Out in Numbers" The Washington Blade p.53
  10. ^ a b Rachael Kupferberg, "Meeting Minutes-GWA- July 28th 1982," Rainbow HIstory Project Archives, Box 5, MS 764, Folder 68, Historical Society of Washington, D.C., Kiplinger Library.
  11. ^ Bonita Becker,(23 March 1984) "The Growing Lesbian Alternative," The Washington Blade, Vol 15 p. 12
  12. ^ "GWA'a 10th Birthday," (11 Jan. 1991) The Washington Blade, p. 32
  13. ^ "GWA Announcement" Rainbow History Project Archives, Kiplinger Library,BOX 5, MS 764, Folder 65 Historic Society of Washington, DC
  14. ^ Janet Howard, (10 May 1985) "Coverage Lacking," The Washington Blade p. 25
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