Great Speeches on Gay Rights

This anthology traces the rhetoric of the gay rights movement from its deeply clandestine beginnings in the late 1800s through the current fight for marriage equality. Speeches include Robert Ingersoll's "Address at the Funeral of Walt Whitman," Harvey Milk's "Hope Speech," and Franklin Kameny's "Civil Liberties: A Progress Report."

James Daley is the editor of several Dover Thrift editions, including The World's Greatest Short Stories, Classic Crime Stories, Favorite Christmas Poems, Great Speeches by African Americans, and Great Writers on the Art of Fiction.

1. Robert G. Ingersoll: “Address at the Funeral of Walt Whitman” 18922. August Bebel: “Address at the Reichstag”  1898 translated by John Lauritsen3. Anna Rueling: “What interest does the women's movement have in solving the homosexual problem?” 1904 translated by Michael Lombardi-Nash Kurt Hiller:4. “Appeal on Behalf of an Oppressed Human Variety.” 1928, translated by John Lauritsen5. Franklin Kameny: “Civil Liberties: A Progress Report” 19646. Jack Nichols: “Why I Joined the Movement” 19677. Sally Gearhart: “The Lesbian and God-the-Father” 19728. Harvey Milk: “The Hope Speech” 19789. Harry Hay: “Unity and More in ‘84” 198410. Sue Hyde: “We Gather in Dubuque” 198811. Urvashi Vaid: “Speech at the March on Washington” 199112.  Jim Kepner: "Why Can't We All Get Together, and What Do We Have in Common?" 199713.  Eric Rofes: "The Emerging Sex Panic Targeting Gay Men" 199714.  Elizabeth Toledo: “Life, Liberty, and the Pursuit of Happiness: The GLBT Movement at a Crossroads” 200015.  Elizabeth Birch: “1st Convention Speech by a Gay Organization's Leader" 200016.  Evan Wolfson: “Marriage Equality and Lessons for the Scary Work of Winning” 200417.  Paul Martin: “The Civil Marriage Act” 200518. Ian Hunter: “A Matter of Interest” 2009 [3pp]**