Sad news. Adele Starr, the first president of PFLAG, has passed away. From her obituary in the LA Times:
In 1976, Starr founded the Los Angeles chapter of Parents and Friends of Lesbians and Gays, a gay rights and acceptance organization known then as Parent FLAG, now as PFLAG.
In 1979, she spoke on the steps of the U.S. Capitol at a march for gay rights — a seminal event often credited with uniting a then-nascent movement.
Two years later, she became PFLAG’s first national president; she served in that capacity until 1986 and remained a forceful advocate for civil rights and, in later years, for the legalization of same-sex marriage.
Starr served at the helm of PFLAG during the onset of the AIDS crisis, said her longtime friend and collaborator Terry DeCrescenzo, founder of another advocacy group formed to reach out to gay and lesbian youth.
“In that time, a lot of us lost hope,” said DeCrescenzo, 66, of Studio City. “Not Adele. And PFLAG became enormously important because it was rock solid…. She was a good woman. She’ll be missed.”
Yes, she will be missed.
