Phoenix Society for Individual Freedom - Kansas City, Mo.
Posted by: Groundspeak Premium Member iconions
N 39° 05.990 W 094° 35.146
15S E 362875 N 4329052
This marker is located at the northeast corner of Barney Allis Plaza - 12th and Central in Kansas City, Mo.
Waymark Code: WMVZJA
Location: Missouri, United States
Date Posted: 06/16/2017
Published By:Groundspeak Premium Member YoSam.
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A Kansas City group is making plans to commemorate the 50th anniversary of a national gathering of LGBT activists that is credited with helping to kick off the gay rights movement.

In February of 1966, the activists gathered at a downtown Kansas City hotel. The meeting led to the “The Phoenix Society for Individual Freedom,” which opened an LGBT community center and began a publication that was distributed nationally.

The Gay and Lesbian Archive of Mid-America at the University of Missouri-Kansas City says a community committee is working with city officials to determine the best way to commemorate the anniversary. Possibilities include educational activities and a historic marker at the meeting site.

GLAMA co-founder Stuart Hinds says the group is “eager to advance awareness of the modern struggle for equality.”

- Fox2Now St. Louis Website



(picture of Drew Shafer)

PHOENIX SOCIETY FOR
INDIVIDUAL FREEDOM

-----•••-----


   The Phoenix Society for Individual Freedom, formed in
March 1966, was the first organization in Kansas City
to address the needs of the local gay and lesbian
community.
   Under Drew Shafer's leadership, Phoenix Society worked
closely with the local religious community, the Kansas
City Health Department, and local law enforcement to ensure
equitable treatment of gays and lesbians in Kansas City. In 1968,
Phoenix House opened as a lesbian and gay community center at
1333 Linwood Blvd where they continued to print and nationally
distribute literature, including Thhe Phoenix: Homophile Voice of Kansas
City, which detailed the group's concerns and activities. Phoenix
Society disbanded in 1971. In the following decades many other
organizations have risen to support and uplift LGBT Kansas Citians.
   This marker recognizes Kansas City's on-going struggle to ensure
justice for all, and celebrates the efforts of those who made
great strides toward achieving that goal.

Erected by the Gay and Lesbian Archive of Mid-America, 2016.

- Marker Text



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