Frank Kameny
American gay rights activist (1925–2011) / From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
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Franklin Edward Kameny (May 21, 1925 – October 11, 2011)[1] was an American gay rights activist. He has been referred to as "one of the most significant figures" in the American gay rights movement.[2]
Frank Kameny | |
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Born | Franklin Edward Kameny (1925-05-21)May 21, 1925 New York City, U.S. |
Died | October 11, 2011(2011-10-11) (aged 86) Washington, D.C., U.S. |
Education | Queens College (BS) Harvard University (MS, PhD) |
Known for | Gay rights activist Fired for being gay by the U.S. Civil Service Commission Co-founder of the Mattachine Society |
Scientific career | |
Fields | Astronomy |
Thesis | A Photoelectric Study of Some RV Tauri and Yellow Semiregular Variables (1956) |
Doctoral advisor | Cecilia Payne-Gaposchkin |
During the Lavender scare, in 1957, Kameny was dismissed from his position as an astronomer in the U.S. Army's Army Map Service in Washington, D.C., because of his homosexuality,[3] leading him to begin "a Herculean struggle with the American establishment" that would "spearhead a new period of militancy in the homosexual rights movement of the early 1960s".[4]
Kameny formally appealed his firing by the U.S. Civil Service Commission.[5] Although unsuccessful, the proceeding was notable as the first known civil rights claim based on sexual orientation pursued in a U.S. court.[6]