A hero of ours.

• Author: Rothschild, Matthew
• Position: Gay rights activist Harry Hay - Brief Article

Harry Hay is not a household name. He should be. This courageous and visionary man launched the modern gay-rights movement even in the teeth of McCarthyism. He proclaimed that gay people deserved full human rights, and he set about the task of organizing for these rights. It wasn't easy. It took him two years to find a single person to sign on with him. But he kept at it, eventually establishing the Mattachine Society, the precursor to many of our current gay-rights organizations.

It's important to know about, and to honor, the pioneers of liberation. Social movements do not happen by themselves. Individuals must take the initiative. Harry Hay has never been afraid to do that.

Anne-Marie Cusac, our managing editor, has been wanting to interview Harry Hay for us almost since she joined The Progressive's staff. When Hay visited Madison a year or two ago and dropped in on the office, she was exhilarated by his insights and intensity. This spring, she flew out to Los Angeles to interview him so she could share his inspiring words and fascinating stories with you.

Today, the need for all of us to show our support for gay rights has never been greater. Evangelical conservatives and opportunistic Republicans have joined forces to scapegoat gays and lesbians. Such public, organized bigotry has not been seen since days of George Wallace and Bull Connor.

As Harry Hay warns us, these are precarious straits for all who are concerned about individual freedom.

Such is the power of encrusted prejudice and ancient scripture that there is even a debate on this issue. It boils down to this: Should it be legal to discriminate against gays and lesbians? Trent Lott and Pat Robertson say yes: They believe you can fire people just because of who they are. For the rightwingers, equal protection under the law is of no concern.

On the progressive side, I'm afraid some of us have not been doing as much as we could be to take on these reactionary forces. There are those who insist that fighting for gay rights detracts from more "serious" issues, such as economic democracy. I don't buy that. Battling prejudice has always been a central concern of progressives, and rightfully so. Was campaigning for civil rights a distraction?

We need to understand that the spirit of liberation cannot be contained in a single bottle. It is in the air, invigorating all who breathe it in.

And we should recognize that each movement for freedom sustains the next. In the last thirty years...