December 17th in Queer History

Events this day in queer history

2007 – Hungarian Parliament passes registered partnerships into law (effective 1st January 2009?)

Born this day

Paul Cadmus (1904 – 1999) US 
Artist

Bertha Harris (1937 – 2005) US 
Author

James “Bing” Davidson (1940 – 1965 ) US 
Actor

Michael Cashman (1950 – ) UK 
Actor / Politician / Activist

Gregg Araki (1959 – ) US 
Director / Producer / Screenwriter

Paul Koering (1964 – ) US 
Politician

Maciej Nowak (1964 – ) Polish 
Journalist / Author / Theatre Critic / Chef

Fabrice Neaud (1968 –  ) French
Comic Book Artist

Sarah Paulson (1975 – ) US 
Actress

Died this day

Marguerite Yourcenar (1903 - 1987) French
Author

Jennifer Gale (1960 - 2008 ) US 
Politician

Sodomy in history, December 17 th

1838 — Arkansas passes a sodomy statute, after relying on a common-law statute for two decades. The penalty is set at 5-21 years.

1931 — The Illinois Supreme Court upholds a sodomy conviction after uncorroborated testimony was admitted in the trial and the state entered evidence of a theft conviction of 13 years earlier.

1934 — A California appellate court upholds a sodomy conviction in which there was no proof of penetration, something state law requires.

1941 — Congress enacts a vagrancy law for the District of Columbia, labeling as vagrant "anyone convicted of a felony loitering in a public place" and anyone guilty of "acts of perversion for hire."

1971 — The Florida Supreme Court strikes down the state’s "crime against nature" law as unconstitutionally vague and overbroad. It says that, with a constantly changing world, what is a crime against nature today is different from what it was a hundred years ago.


Sources:

Wikipedia

glbtq emcyclopedia

On this gay day