1976: By a vote of 6 to 3, the U.S. Supreme Court upholds the constitutionality of Virginia’s sodomy laws.

1985: The Los Angeles Times comes out in favor of gay rights and urges the U.S. Supreme Court to take a stand on more gay-related issues.

1988: Georgetown University, the nation’s oldest Roman Catholic university, loses an eight-year legal battle to keep from having to provide facilities and financial support to the campus’s gay student groups.

1989: The Academy Awards, produced this year by gay producer Allan Carr, showcases a now infamous rendition of “Proud Mary” sung by Rob Lowe and an actress dressed as the Disney version of Snow White.  Says Carr before the ceremony, “It really was my childhood dream to produce the Oscars. I’m a child of the movies.”

1990: Delivering his first speech on AIDS since he took office fourteen months earlier, President Bush is heckled by National Gay and Lesbian Task Force director Urvashi Vaid, who hollers, “We need your leadership! We need more than one speech every fourteen months!” Vaid, holding a sign reading “TALK IS CHEAP, AIDS FUNDING IS NOT,” is quickly “escorted” from the auditorium by police.