Making Queer Quaker history - Entire Series Registration
Registering on this page will get you access to all of the events in this series! If you are interested in registering for just one event, please see the individual events on this page: https://lu.ma/queerquaker24
About this series
The stories of how congregations in the Religious Society of Friends became open and affirming for LGBTQ+ people during the mid-twentieth century need to be told to shape the future.
Most scholarly accounts of twentieth-century Quaker history do not describe Quaker views on LGBTQ+ people during this period, and most scholarly works about gay rights history do not examine the influence and involvement of Quakers in the project of gay liberation during the mid-twentieth century. And while there are limited scholarly texts and studies devoted to this understanding, there are even more limited resources for audiences outside of academia.
Amidst increasing efforts to erase queer lives from the public narrative today, highlighting and sharing scholarship on this subject has become vital work. Bringing to light this crucial history offers the opportunity for us to reaffirm Quakerism's commitment to inclusion and justice and to learn from our past, helping us know ourselves better, to be able to effect positive change in the future.
The “Making Queer Quaker History” series by Beacon Hill Friends House is intended to share these - often deeply personal- stories and bring the Quaker community together for further exploration of unexamined aspects of queer Quaker history.
We are offering this series on a pay-as-led/sliding scale in a hybrid format (zoom and onsite) and as both lectures and workshops.
Pay-as-led/sliding scale: We are suggesting a price of $25 per session (for 6 out of 8 sessions). We do not want cost to be a barrier for any participant, and we also understand that some folks can afford more. Participants are able to change the registration price to any number down to $0 and up to any number they feel led to. No questions asked, no applications needed. Contributions to the series help us pay our facilitators, cover administrative costs, and ensure we can continue to offer programming into the future.
Hybrid: This series will be available for attendees onsite at Beacon Hill Friends House in Boston and on Zoom. We welcome groups from the same location to attend together. Please let us know if you are interested in doing so!
Lectures: These are intended to be more one-way content, with lecturer Brian Blackmore offering a presentation and then opportunities for Q&A.
Workshops: These are more participatory events, with content from Brian Blackmore interspersed with participatory activities for small and large groups. Jennifer Newman will co-facilitate with Brian, and additional co-facilitators are likely as well.
Events in this series
Tuesday, Sept. 3, 7:30 - 8:30 PM: “The Evolution of Quaker inclusion of lesbian, gay, and bisexual people” (Lecture)
Tuesday, Sept. 10, 7:00 - 9:00 PM “Towards a more inclusive Religious Society of Friends for LGBTQ+ people” (Workshop)
Tuesday, Sept. 17, 7:30 - 8:30 PM: “The Quaker Civilian Readjustment Committee: The first social service organization for gay people in the United States” (Lecture)
Tuesday, Sept. 24, 7:30 - 8:30 PM “Towards a Quaker View of Sex: The First Public and Positive Evaluation of Lesbian and Gay Sexuality from a Religious Group” (Lecture)
Tuesday, Oct. 1, 7:00 - 9:00 PM “The Quaker Peace Testimony, Quaker Abolitionism, and Quaker support for Gay Rights” (Workshop)
Monday, Oct. 7, 7:30 - 9:00 PM ET - Partnership with Pendle Hill: “Too Queer To Be Quaker:” The Limits of Liberal Quaker Inclusion of Lesbian and Gay People during the Cold War and Today. (Lecture)
Tuesday, Oct. 15, 7:00 - 9:00 PM “Queer Approaches to the Inner Light and Unprogrammed Worship” (Workshop)
Sunday, Oct. 27, 1 - 3 PM - BHFH Ernest and Esther Weed Memorial Lecture: “Quakers and the Gay Rights Movement” (Lecture)
Event Accessibility
Beacon Hill Friends House is working on making our historic space accessible to everyone. (Covid policies for onsite attendees are below).
Automated Closed Captions will be available for all participants (on Zoom and in-person).
Physical space: This event will take place in the BHFH Parlor, which does not have a ground-level entrance. Our primary entrance is up a flight of stairs. If you would like to attend this event but need it to be held in a different space, please indicate so on your registration. On the basement level, we have a single-user, all-gender bathroom with wall-mounted handrails and ample space for chairs and/or aides. We are not a scent-free space but tend to be low-scent.
Please let us know on your registration if there are other things BHFH can do to make this event more accessible for you!
Attending onsite at BHFH (Covid policy and directions)
Covid policies: All in-person attendees are required to wear a well-fitting KN95, N95 or similar mask while inside. Masks will be available for those who forget them.
Getting to BHFH: Use the address "8 Chestnut St., Boston, MA, 02108" for navigation. We recommend taking public transit to get here: We are a short walk from every transit line in Boston. If you choose to drive in, paid street parking is available on Charles Street (and on Beacon Street before 6 pm). We also have parking passes available for $9 to the Boston Common Garage.
About the team
(Additional bios forthcoming)
Brian Blackmore holds a Ph.D. in Religious Studies from Temple University, with extensive academic research and published writings examining the role that Quakers played in gay rights movements and the inclusion of gay and lesbian people in the Quaker tradition during the mid-twentieth century. He is a Quaker educator and community builder whose career has focused on religion, social justice, and peacemaking.
Jennifer Newman (she/her) is a dynamic and experienced facilitator and program designer. Jennifer is queer, a Quaker, and holds a Master of Theological Studies from Vanderbilt Divinity School, where she focused her studies on Religion, Gender, and Sexuality. She became the Executive Director of Beacon Hill Friends House in April 2023.
About Beacon Hill Friends House
Beacon Hill Friends House is a Quaker Center for Learning and Action in downtown Boston, MA. Founded in 1957, its mission is "to embody the Quaker principles of faith, simplicity, integrity, community, and social responsibility in order to nurture and call forth the Light in all of us." BHFH lives into its mission by:
Providing a center where Friends and others can meet, worship, and learn
Advancing and fostering the principles of the Religious Society of Friends
Offering opportunities for leadership development, personal deepening, and collective action
Maintaining a diverse, intentional, residential community guided by Friends principles