(Photos courtesy the Tampa Bay LGBT History Project)
TAMPA BAY | University of South Florida Professor David K. Johnson and his students have launched a new website dedicated to preserving Tampa Bay’s LGBTQ+ history.
An accomplished historian responsible for “The Lavender Scare” and “Buying Gay,” Johnson helped found the USF library’s LGBTQ+ collection in 2003. It was one of the first scholarly initiatives to collect materials on LGBTQ+ life in Florida.
He uses its archive, which includes historical copies of Watermark Out News, to teach students how to conduct primary source research and more. Johnson says the project began to take shape because of “the conception that a lot of people have, including my students, that LGBT history happens elsewhere … in New York, in San Francisco.
“When I teach LGBT history, it usually draws on a national narrative, too, but I wanted to be able to teach about what was happening locally,” he continues. “Even what we consider a national story like Stonewall was a local story in New York. Harvey Milk was a local story in San Francisco. I wanted to find those local stories because I knew they existed; we have been collecting LGBT materials at USF now for over 20 years.”
Supported by a grant from the USF Foundation’s LGBTQ+ Giving Fund Leadership Council, the Tampa Bay LGBT History Project was officially announced in late June. A complimentary Facebook group was formed the year prior, allowing supporters to connect and share stories of their own. It now has nearly 500 members.
“Tampa Bay’s LGBT community has a rich and proud history, but one that has been hidden for too long,” Johnson shared when it was announced. “Our goal is to document these stories and make them accessible to inspire a new generation of activism.”
The website currently features six focal points, the first of which details the history of MCC Tampa. The Metropolitan Community Church became Tampa’s first formal LGBTQ+ organization over 50 years ago.
“Celebrating Pride” details Tampa Bay’s “many twists and turns” with LGBTQ+ celebrations, from Pride picnics in 1976 to the ban on Pride in Hillsborough County and the rise of St Pete Pride, which in its 20+ years has become the largest Pride in Florida.
“Lesbian Life” examines defunct lesbian bars, historical publications and groups while “Beach Bars and Resorts” examines former LGBTQ+ hotspots. Among them are St. Petersburg’s Suncoast Resort and Flamingo Resort, the latter of which closed in 2019.
Tampa Bay’s drag scene is also chronicled, with the website noting the region “has been a center for drag performance for over a century.” It details female impersonation in the 1930s and more modern entertainers like Joey Brooks, known as “The First Lady of Ybor.”
“Fighting for Our Rights” highlights Tampa Bay activists like Equality Florida Executive Director Nadine Smith, trailblazing Hillsborough County politician Kevin Beckner and more. The section examines their work and the region’s politics beginning in the 1990s.
Johnson says he’s encouraged by reception so far, particularly the project’s social media following. He says its Facebook group and Instagram page are allowing the community to connect and provide their perspectives, furthering the research.
He also says the project serves another purpose.
“I want to reach the younger generation,” he explains. “The LGBT community feels under assault right now, in Florida and nationally. Our rights are under attack and trans rights in particular are under attack.
“I think the website offers a lesson — that we’ve been through this before,” he continues. “We’ve suffered oppression and we’ve suffered, in fact, much worse than this, and we have overcome it as a community to become stronger.”
Those interested in in contributing to the project can email Info@TampaBayLGBTHistory.org, follow @TampaBayLGBTHistory on Instagram or join its Facebook group at Facebook.com/Groups/TampaBayLGBTHistory.
For more information, visit TampaBayLGBTHistory.org.
