American Experience; Stonewall Uprising; Interview with Virginia Apuzzo, 3 of 3

In the wake of Stonewall, you had the Gay Liberation Front, the Lesbian Liberation Movement, you had the Gay Academic Union, it was a proliferation of organizations that sprung up and continued the struggle and continued the struggle to this day. We're drawn to that sense of order and structure, and this event, these people, these characters, as the thing which became a bit of a challenge. Yes. I don't know if you have any reflection on that, but it's an irony that it occurs to me.

Right. If you could redress that to the Cape, that would be great. Well, I think the contrast between the order and the regularity of your life and the convent, and then coming out of the convent and joining a movement which basically was the result of a combustion, it was disordered and disorganized. But you know when you're struggling to be free, you swim through what you have to swim through to get to where you're going. It's a little bit like escaping to get to freedom, and people, you know, have climbed over Bob wires and they've climbed over mountains, and for me, it was a matter of getting into that milieu and sorting out and finding where I could find my place. And I think that in those early days, that's what it was. People sought to find their place. Some women, instead of coming into the gay movement, found their place in the feminist movement and kept demanding their place in the feminist movement and kept rebutting this

notion that we were the lavender menace. Some people went into other movements and demanded their appropriate place as lesbians or gay people, and that's the miracle of Stonewall. I mean, it really helped us find our place and make our way. Quick question, did you speak to other sisters about you? I never spoke to anyone in the convent, but when I get out, my mistress of novices is now about 85 or 90 years old, and she has been to my home with my partner and is a woman committed to growth and a wonderful experience. At the time, no, at the time. I spent my time working and teaching and doing that kind of thing, but I didn't discuss it with anyone.

Okay. Excellent. I agree. We're ready. Okay. Thank you very much. Okay, we're only for room time, so we'll three of these interviews. Wow. Thank you very much.