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Institutions dedicated to LGBT history an exciting, largely untapped resource

(from lgbtqnation.com)
The road to equality is paved with court victories and legislative gains, but also by progress in the social theatre of the culture war. This is the latest iteration of the struggle to contend with intolerance through outreach, community building, and education — needs for which cultural institutions are apposite.
Friday, which marked the fourth day of Gay History Month, editorials are circulating in conservative media outlets that caution parents about the “sexual assault on our children” posed by public schools’ recognition of LGBT history.
In this July 4, 1967 photo, demonstrators call for protection of gays from discrimination as they march in front of Independence Hall in Philadelphia.
This largely stems from a statement by Mat Staver, Founder of Liberty Counsel, which pointed to the inclusion of Araujo’s story in curricula as evidence that organizers want to teach students about “sex and murder.”
A verdict of second-degree murder was reached for defendants in the 2002 trial surrounding the brutal killing of Gwen Araujo, a pre-operative transgender teen who was beaten and strangled by four men at a party in Newark, California.
The case, which evokes memory of the Matthew Shepard murder, is a study in the application of hate crime legislation and the infamous gay (or transgender) panic defense.
Full article here.