Join us for a very special exhibit opening of Gerber/Hart’s newest exhibit!
De-Coded: Surviving the Law as a Sexual Deviant opens on Saturday, July 23rd, at 6 PM! Join curators Anna Mason, Whit Sadusky, and Jess Smoot along with historian Owen Keehnen and Yale doctoral candidate Kate Redburn for a discussion of how Chicago’s LGBTQ communities have found ways to thrive in the face of legal oppression throughout the city’s history.
In 1961, Illinois became the first state in the US to decriminalize sodomy, one of many legal codes meant to classify homosexuals as outlaws. Crimes of sodomy, crossdressing, and even vagrancy were expressly used to target the community, making them second class citizens seemingly unworthy of protections under the law. Forced to choose between safety and authenticity, queer Chicagoans still found ways to thrive in the face of these shifting forms of oppression.
Suggested donation is $10 and includes delicious beverages from our sponsors at Hopewell Brewing, Chateau Wright, and Slikwines.
This is our first in-person exhibit opening since 2019, and we can’t wait! Get excited for a lovely evening full of Chicago queer history!
See the Facebook event here: https://fb.me/e/1W6i8Vi0B
Can’t join us in person? Join us on Zoom! Registration is required. Register here.
Can’t make it but want to support this event? Donate to support Gerber/Hart’s mission of preserving and making LGBTQ history accessible to all here.