Keywords

Histrory, Gender Studies, LGBTQ, Community, Protest, Orlando, Florida

Abstract

In the United States, there have been efforts by the dominant socioeconomic class in Western countries, such as the United States, to regulate gender conformity and heteronormativity in schools, jobs, family structures, and public policy. Florida is no stranger to these efforts of regulation and has had a turbulent history with the LGBTQIA community, enough so that it has occasionally caught the public eye throughout the years. Exploring the actions and effects of the Johns Committee in the 1950s and 1960s, as well as the protests of Anita Bryant in Miami in the 1970s as they challenged equal rights ordinances, it can be seen that there were efforts by both the state and individuals to limit the agency of the gay community by challenging their citizenship, which continue today as state legislation has been working to pass bills that limited gender expression and education in Florida schools. The LGBTQ+ community of the Greater Orlando area has been able to establish a community despite these efforts, so what has been necessary for them to maintain citizenship? Using the concepts established by past historians of LGBTQ+ history and by feminist and queer theorists gives a foundation for research. Examining historic efforts in the Orlando area shows the work of local activists and organizations to establish a community and a safe space for the gay community, and examining efforts in recent history that extend that cause to the rest of the LGBTQ+ community gives an idea of what needs to be done to establish community and promote agency despite efforts to deny citizenship to these groups.

Completion Date

2025

Semester

Spring

Committee Chair

Cassanello, Robert

Degree

Master of Arts (M.A.)

College

College of Graduate Studies

Department

Dean's Office GRDST

Identifier

DP0029335

Document Type

Dissertation/Thesis

Campus Location

Orlando (Main) Campus

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