Once upon a time there was a man named William Sipple

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http://www.lambda.net/~maximum/sipple.html

Billy, Don't Be A Hero
On September 22, 1975, Sipple went to Union Square in the heart of San Francisco to get a glimpse of the President of the United States who was attending an event at the St. Francis Hotel. At 3:30 p.m., President Ford emerged from the hotel and was greeted by a sea of onlookers. Sipple was standing next to Sara Jane Moore when she pulled out a gun and fired it in the President's direction. Before she could fire a second round, Sipple grabbed her arm and prevented her from hitting her target just 35 feet away.

"I want you to know how much I appreciated your selfless actions last Monday. The events were a shock to us all, but you acted quickly and without fear for your own safety. By doing so, you helped to avert danger to me and to others in the crowd. You have my heartfelt appreciation." -- President Gerald Ford/September 25, 1975
On September 24, the San Francisco Chronicle printed a story that alleged that the White House was delaying their expression of gratitude to Sipple because they found out that he was gay. Only a handful of newspapers followed the Chronicle's lead and disclosed Sipple's sexual orientation as a part of the story. One of the papers was the Detroit Free Press.

When the news reached Michigan, the heroic tale turned tragic. Sipple's mother was reportedly harassed by her neighbors. When her son called to talk to her, she hung up on him. Sipple's split with his family never healed. When his mother died in 1979, his father refused contact with him.

end of quote

In 1975 gays needed heros. Virtually no people of substance were known to be gay. It many states gay doctors, lawyers, and teachers couldn't be licenced. Gays needed a hero and Billy was tailor made. A decorated marine who saved the President from a Manson inspired loon what more could we ask for.

But then he was outed and his life was ruined. It was done for the most honorable of reasons. It also destroyed a man. We needed a hero then far more than we need to root out hypocrites now. It was wrong to out Billy then and it is wrong to out Larry now. The only difference is that we had better motives back then. Finding heros for a people berefit of them is a far better motive than revenge on people who don't toe our line.

[razors edge]

1. K&R

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3. thanks for the r

but it appears this thread is destined to die.

[razors edge]

5. I remember this story

always thought it was sad that the issue was an issue. I'm not gay but this always bothered me.

Richard Jewel comes to mind.

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2. kick

[petronius]

4. Thanks for posting...

Your last paragraph is very well stated.

[dsc]

6. Thanks

[The Backlash Cometh]

7. kick

[Dick Diver]

8. K&R

[bigtree]

9. kick

[DoYouEverWonder]

10. Billy was not an elected official

he was a private citizen and deserved to have his privacy respected.

When you run for public office you open your life and your past to scrutiny.

I have no sympathy for closet gay Republican elected officials, who promote the GOP anti-gay agenda.

[dsc]

11. I don't either but I have sympathy for us and our values.

[DoYouEverWonder]

12. There is nothing wrong with telling the truth

and in order to take back Congress we must expose the hypocrisy of the GOP leadership. The sex scandal in Congress is about a lot more then whether or not these elected officials are gay. There is something really kinky going on in the halls of Congress and the WH and it's been going on for decades. It's time to open all the closet doors on the Hill.

[Maven]

13. K&R, great post, but

forgive me--which "Larry" are you referring to?

Whom are we outing this week?

Edit: Never mind. :eyes:

[mondo joe]

14. Dude, simple solution: if you don't want people to know you're gay

DON'T LET ANYONE KNOW.

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16. I don't think that man did

other than a few friends.

[mondo joe]

18. Really? Then how did Harvey Milk know?

Obviously people knew.

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26. They were coworkers

He worked for gay politicians.

[mondo joe]

27. So his coworkers knew he was gay. If he wanted it kept a secret

he should have kept it a secret.

You may not see what I'm getting at here, but what I'd like to know is what obligation you think anyone is under to keep something secret for someone else that they never agreed to keep confidential.

If I see someone at a gay bar, which is a public place, am I obliged to not mention to anyone that I saw them there?

If they come to my house with their same sex spouse am I obliged to not mention that to anyone?

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30. There is a large difference between not telling anyone

and telling the entire world including his parents. I don't think one should have to be out to everyone in order to be out to someone.

[mondo joe]

31. Well that's part of the complication of being OUT.

People are out in varying degrees.

That said, this was a private person and I don't see any point in outing him.

As far as public figures are concerned, I think if they show up in bars and at events with a same sex spouse, etc etc they have given people free license to say so.

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32. andmy point is that once you start on this road

someone is going to take it where you don't wish to go.

[mondo joe]

33. Really? Where do think I don't wish it to go?

I may be more flexible than you think. :-)

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34. to admittedly private people

The likes of Dobson and Wyerlic won't stop with gay GOP staffers. They will get cops, prosecutors, and other government employees too.

[mondo joe]

35. There's nothing stopping them from doing that now.

And private citizens already have a different status from public figures. Just pick up a newspaper and see for yourself.

What on earth makes you think Dobson would do that in the future but now?

[dsc]

36. He is waiting to see how this will be treated

and all of what I listed have been considered public figures at various times. Trust me this road goes places that you don't want it to go.

[mondo joe]

37. Frankly, I think that's incredibly naive.

Dobson doesn't give a shit about liberals okay on this, and the consdon't care who he outs as long as it's not them.

He has no reason to not do it now.

And if I'm wrong, I can think of things far worse than every gay person in the country being outed.

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38. even Dobson has limits to the amount of bad press he will tolerate

At least I think he does.

[mondo joe]

39. I don't know that he has such limits, nor that what you or I might

consider "bad press" would be considered as such by him.

And if he really wanted to out people but thought he might get bad press, he could do it now through surrogates and get away with it easily.

[dsc]

40. that is likely true

[tuvor]

15. How do you suggest the hypocrisy be counteracted, then?

I don't believe doing nothing is acceptable.

(Edited to add, I don't believe you'll find a single sane DUer who thinks Mr. Simple was treated appropriately, since he was not an elected rep using his powers against members of his own minority group.)

[dsc]

17. You defeat them in elections

and or elect enough pro gay people that they are a minority.

[tuvor]

41. That's great every 2 or 4 years. If you win.

In the meantime...what?

[underpants]

I had never heard that story before

Gee wonder why?

Recommended.

[underpants]

19. I had never heard that story before

Gee wonder why?

Recommended.

[NewYorkerfromMass]

20. Connections to SLA/Patty Hearst

Weird times. (not that these times don't take the cake)

http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/amex/guerrilla/timeline/timeline2.html

[underpants]

23. Very interesting

I am now fully briefed on everything I could possible want to know about the SLA.

Thanks

[Irreverend IX]

21. "It also destroyed a man ... his life was ruined"

Are you saying that those things shouldn't happen to Republicans? I say they should happen to anyone who supports the GOP.

[mondo joe]

22. Next time post stories about the countless gay men and lesbians

who suffer because of the actions of the GOP, including their gay hypocrite members.

[HiFructosePronSyrup]

24. Was William Sipple a homophobic politician?

[hedgehog]

25. Thank you for telling this story.

It's one I never heard before.

Sometimes I think I am the only straight person in America willing to admit how much I've learned and how much my attitudes have changed in the last thirty years. I hope the day comes that we will honor people like Sipple and Milk the way we honor Martin Luther King now.

[dsc]

29. I remember the twinkie defense as a kid

and it was actually that which led me to look up what gay was and make a connection with myself. Even as a young boy I knew that the twinkie defense was total nonsense and that had Milk not been gay it never would have been accepted.

[canetoad]

28. Small correction

and nothing pertinent to the substance of the thread: Sara Jane Moore was not a Manson follower. On 5th September Lynette (Squeaky) Fromme, a member of Charles Manson's Family, attempted to shoot President Ford.