Primary Source Set: Incarcerated people
The prison industrial complex, or PIC, refers to the way that government and private interests overlap to incarcerate, surveil, and police people (particularly Black people and other people of color). LGBTQ people have a long history of interactions with the PIC, due to the ways in which sexuality and gender have historically been, and continue to be, policed by the state (in San Francisco, laws policing gender and gender expression appeared on the statute books as early as 1873). This source set is an introduction to some of those interactions. It includes the voices of incarcerated people, allies on the outside and members of the state who worked to incarcerate others, such as community relations officers. The set also explores intersections between prison and AIDS, gender, trans identity, queerness and race.
Detail of a flier from the group Join Hands, circa 1970s. From the Groups Ephemera collection (GRP EPH).
Selected Source Set
Additional Resources
Additional resources:
The GLBT Historical Society offers a source set on “Policing and Resistance.”
The Freedom Archives “contains over 12,000 hours of audio and video recordings as well as print materials dating primarily from the late-1960s to the mid-90s. These collections chronicle the progressive history of the Bay Area, the United States, and international movements for liberation and social justice.”
Contact reference@glbthistory.org for research questions or information about reproductions or permissions.
These primary source sets are just a small sampling of our digitized materials. Additional resources are available in our digital collections. Our extensive archival holdings are searchable through our catalog.