In honor of Pride Month, episode five of History Unbound dives into the rarely talked about Lavender Scare. Occurring in the 1940s and 50s, the US government fired thousands of gay federal employees for the mere fact of being gay. Similar to the Red Scare which sought to out Communist individuals, the Lavender Scare spread dangerous misinformation about LGBTQ+ Americans. The Lavender Scare not only resulted in gay employees losing their jobs, it broke up and quieted queer communities who were afraid of federal and public discrimination. It also led to the closeting of many queer folks who were terrified of losing their jobs. Even people who knew an LGBTQ person were at risk of being fired via “guilt of association.” The act of publicly outing individuals and stripping them of their humanity ultimately led a lot of queer people to take their own lives during this period. It wasn’t until 1998, that President Clinton passed a bill banning discrimination on the basis of sexuality when employing federal employees. Host, Brookelyn Lambright, ends episode five by connecting the Lavender Scare of the 1950s to the very real anti-transgender policies of conservative politicians today.

A special thanks to @daveincamas for the Veteran’s Day Parade audio.

More resources:

“These People are Frightened to Death” by the National Archives

The Lavender Scare by Queer America

“You’ve Probably Heard of the Red Scare, but the Lesser-Known, Anti-Gay ‘Lavender Scare’ Is Rarely Taught in Schools” by Suyin Haynes

“Frank Kemeney: Father of the Gay Rights Movement” by Jeffry Iovannone

“LGBT History: The Lavender Scare” by National LGBT Chamber of Commerce

“Cold War, Lavender Scare, and LGBTQ+ Activism” by National Park Service

“The Lavender Scare: How Fear and Prejudice Impacted a Nation in Crisis” by Erin Owens