WASHINGTON, D.C.–The recent nomination by President Obama of Eric K. Fanning to be U.S. Secretary of the Army is a seminal moment in American and LGBT history; if confirmed by the Senate, Fanning would be the first openly gay secretary of a military branch.
Wed., Oct. 7, the National Press Club will look back at a darker period in the nation regarding these issues.
Award-winning investigative journalist Michael Isikoff, who serves as Yahoo’s chief investigative correspondent, will present his new documentary, “Uniquely Nasty: The U.S. Government’s War on Gays.”
It explores a dark and little-known chapter in America’s recent political past, when gays and lesbians were barred from working for the federal government and the FBI, through its “sex deviates” program, secretly collected hundreds of thousands of files on the sex lives of American citizens.
“Uniquely Nasty” includes never-before-seen government memos by legendary FBI director J. Edgar Hoover (read by George Takei) and John Steele, a top lawyer for the U.S. Civil Service Commission (read by Matt Bomer) asserting that gays were “not suitable” for federal employment.
Following the screening, a distinguished panel will react to the film and some of its disclosures, including significant new information about the Cold War-era anti-gay blackmail plot that led to the suicide of Sen. Lester Hunt. The panel will also discuss why the subject the film explores is relevant to current issues of importance to LGBT Americans, including opportunities for running for elective office.
The moderator will be Marilyn Geewax, NPR senior business editor and member of the National Press Club’s Board of Governors. Panel members will be Isikoff; Charles Francis, president, Mattachine Society of Washington, D.C.; Paul M. Thompson, partner, McDermott Will & Emery LLP; and Jaan Williams, director of domestic programs, Victory Fund and Institute.
The event is sponsored by the National Press Club events committee; the screening will commence at 6:30 p.m., followed by the discussion from 7–8 p.m. The club is located at 529 14th St. N.W., 13th Floor, Washington, D.C.
Further details are available here.
