U.S.’s Newest Museum Highlights Gay Contribution to Independence America’s newest museum– the Museum of the American Revolution in Philadelphia– does something quite revolutionary: It recognizes the LGBT community as having played a part of that revolution. And it does so with several exhibits.
Irene’s Story
Let me introduce you to Irene Benedetti – a short, slim, soft-spoken Italian woman who hails from South Philly, but could be from any Italian neighborhood in any major city. At a recent dinner party, someone asked her what it was like growing up as an out lesbian in the early 1960s. You see, Irene is now a senior, and most LGBT activists of today only know a little of our elders’ stories. In our community, LGBT seniors are largely invisible. Our activists talk about or mention Stonewall and all it symbolizes, but that symbolism is rarely personalized.