A Conversation with Jai Moore took place in the Hatcher Library Gallery on October 23. The evening began with Professor Gayle Rubin discussing her days as a young undergraduate student in 1970 when she discovered the Labadie Collection for the first time, and how it opened her world to lesbian and gay history. Afterwards, Dr. Tim Retzloff spoke about his research on Detroit’s gay history, which resulted in his dissertation, "City, Suburb, and the Changing Bounds of Lesbian and Gay Life and Politics in Metropolitan Detroit, 1945-1985," (Yale University, May 2014). Prompted by questions from Tim, Jai described in colorful detail what gay social life was like in Detroit in the 1950s and 60s. Jai Moore is the last surviving original member of the Detroit Area Mattachine Society. The Society’s records are part of the Labadie Collection and are used frequently by students and researchers to study mid-20th century gay history.
Here is the link to the recording of the event, along with the images that were used.