Bonus Video: Gays Versus the Post Office
Imagine if you went to mail a letter and the post office says, "sorry, you can't. You're too gay." Essentially, that's what happened in the 1950s when the US government seized a whole bunch of copies of a magazine for queer people, and told them they couldn't use the mail to discuss homosexuality. And that's why queers aren't allowed to use the mail to this day.
Just kidding! The magazine fought back. This week's bonus video is the story of how they did that, and what happened next.
Also! Here are the talks I'm doing this month!
May 5: Stockholm
May 7: Vienna
May 10: Utrecht
May 17: Heidelberg
More details at https://www.mattbaume.com/events
I'll also be researching queer/pop culture history in all of these cities, so if there are any people or places or stories I should be aware of, please let me know:
Stockholm
Vienna
Utrecht
Berlin
Heidelberg
Munich
Zurich
Venice
London
And -- I just watched a lovely documentary about Lilith Fair, and if you remember or are curious about 90s music (especially women singer/songwriters) I think you'll enjoy it too. It's called Lilith Fair: Creating a Mystery, and it's streaming now on Hulu and Disney+.
Backup link to the bonus video: https://youtu.be/YiNbGtEfoNs
Comments (10)
“And that is why queer people are not allowed to use the mail to this day.” Lol! That gave me a laugh! 😂 “Just kidding, they actually did not stand for that, they fought back, and they won.” 🙌
Haha but just imagine if they had lost!!! I wonder how long it would've taken to overturn.
Very interesting. Thank you for this.
I'm not sure if you have ever covered this but, in West Side Story, the song "Gee, Officer Krupke had to be changed because of post office concerns. The last line of the song is "Gee, Officer Krupke – Krup you!" Lyricist Stephen Sondheim originally wanted to break a then-existing Broadway taboo by ending the song with "Gee, Officer Krupke – fuck you!", but Columbia Records, which owned the rights to the cast album, told Sondheim that the album could then not be shipped to other states without violating the obscenity laws of the era.
If you're going to be in London, you might want to check out the British Library! There's loads of stuff in there, some of it has to be about queer topics. Plus if you let them know that you're a successful YouTuber with an interest in queer culture, they might be able to point you in the right direction to find the kind of things you'd need.
Have a save flight to Europe! I'll be there in Utrecht. Tot ziens!
Totally off topic, I know, but who's the stunningly well dressed little creature (I think it's a bird?) standing to your right on top of the books?
Oh haha that’s a little winter bird that we got ourselves as a housewarming present when we moved to seattle!
Always fascinating stuff, Matt, thanks for the post (no pun intended)! Hope all goes well on your speaking tour!
Such a shame I can't come to greet you at this tour in Europe, but I wish you have fun and safe travels! :D Oh, right! And thanks for the bonus video