Daughters of Bilitis

The Daughters of Bilitis (bɪˈliːtᵻs), also called the DOB or the Daughters, was the first lesbian civil and political rights organization in the United States. The organization, formed in San Francisco in 1955, was conceived as a social alternative to lesbian bars, which were subject to raids and police harassment. As the DOB gained members, their focus shifted to providing support to women who were afraid to come out. The DOB educated them about their rights and about gay history. The historian Lillian Faderman declared, "Its very establishment in the midst of witch-hunts and police harassment was an act of courage, since members always had to fear that they were under attack, not because of what they did, but merely because of who they were." The Daughters of Bilitis endured for 40 years, becoming an educational resource for lesbians, gay men, researchers and mental health professionals. After World War II, anti-communist sentiments quickly became associated with the personal secrets of people who worked for the US government. Congress began to require the registration of members of "subversive groups." In 1950, the State Department declared homosexuals to be security risks (because of vulnerability to blackmail), and what followed was a succession of more repressive acts that included the dismissal of federal, state and local government employees suspected of being homosexual; politically motivated police raids on gay bars all over the US and Canada; even the enactment of laws prohibiting cross-dressing for men and women. More specifically, regarding San Francisco's history where the Daughters of Bilitis were founded, there were police raids specifically on lesbian bars like Adler and Tommy's Place, both occurring on September 8, 1954. In 1955, Del Martin and Phyllis Lyon had been lovers for three years when they complained to a gay male couple that they did not know any other lesbians. The gay couple introduced Martin and Lyon to another lesbian couple, one of whom, a Filipina woman named Rosalie "Rose" Bamberger, suggested they create a social club.