History Episodes

Feb. 20, 2024

90. The UpStairs Lounge Arson Attack

On Sunday, June 24, 1973, a gay bar in New Orleans was intentionally set ablaze, killing 32 people and injuring another 15. Fifty years later, despite ample evidence, no arrests have ever been made. In this episode, we’re tak...

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Oct. 10, 2023

77. Coming Out

Coming out is a deeply personal and pivotal moment for LGBTQ+ individuals, encompassing the courageous act of sharing their authentic identity with others, fostering self-acceptance, and seeking understanding and validation. ...

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July 18, 2023

65. Fire Island

Just fifty miles east of Manhattan, Fire Island has been considered a gay village since the 1950s, with the stretch of land between Fire Island Pines and Cherry Grove—known as the Meat Rack—being a safe haven for repressed ga...

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June 27, 2023

63. The Stonewall Riots

In 1960s New York City, gay men needed a safe space to socialize without being arrested, which resulted in many frequenting private bottle clubs, like the Stonewall Inn, which was owned by the Mafia. On June 28, 1969, during ...

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June 13, 2023

61. The Pulse Nightclub Shooting

During the early morning hours of Sunday, June 12, 2016, a gunman entered Pulse nightclub in Orlando, Florida, and opened fire on the crowd, who was celebrating Latin Night. After more than three hours of terror, 49 lives wer...

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April 4, 2023

51. ACT UP: Silence = Death

In 1981, reports of a “rare cancer” affecting homosexual men surfaced, which marks the start of the AIDS crisis. For years, those living with AIDS were largely neglected by the government and medical community. In this episod...

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Feb. 28, 2023

46. Obergefell v. Hodges and the Ongoing Fight for Marriage Equality

Correction: The U.S. Supreme Court's landmark decision for Obergefell v. Hodges came on June 26, 2015. It was incorrectly/accidentally stated as January 26, 2015 at the 15:25 time mark. In the United States, the fight for mar...

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Oct. 18, 2022

27. Matthew Shepard

On October 8, 1998, a 21-year-old college student was picked up from a gay bar, tortured, and murdered because of his sexuality in a state that had no hate crime laws to protect him. More than twenty years later, we continue ...

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Sept. 27, 2022

24. Gay Villages: Won't You Be My Gaybor?

It’s no secret that cities are typically more tolerant of the LGBTQ+ community, and a larger city allows for greater opportunities in general, as well as a larger dating pool. But how did the iconic gay neighborhoods we all k...

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Sept. 20, 2022

23. Let's Talk About the F Word

We’re all familiar with the F word (rhymes with maggot) and, unfortunately, we’ve probably been called it at some point in our lives. But where did this slur come from? In this episode, we’re taking a look into the etymology ...

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Aug. 23, 2022

19. The Queer History of Disco

In between the politics of the Stonewall Riots and the AIDS pandemic, disco emerged as a haven for gay men to escape the confines of heterosexuality. In this episode, we’re taking a look at the history of disco, its queer roo...

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Aug. 9, 2022

17. Mobsters & Mos: How the Mafia Owned Gay Nightlife

In 1960s New York City, the Mafia needed a place to conduct business without police detection and gay men needed a safe space to socialize without being arrested. The result: the Genovese family ended up controlling the major...

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July 19, 2022

14. The Ban on Gay Blood Donations

Amidst the AIDS pandemic, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) banned gay and bisexual men from ever being eligible to donate blood to protect people receiving blood transfusions from the possibility of getting infected wit...

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May 31, 2022

07. The History of Gay Representation in TV & Film

We’ve come a long way from the days of being portrayed on TV and in film as the sassy, sexless, gay best friend, but there are still improvements to be made. In this episode, we’re diving into the history of gay representatio...

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