Part 4: Our Hall of Fame

Any celebration of the The Advocate's founding in 1967 must honor the heroes for LGBT rights that we've covered for 45 years. With one honoree named per year, the list will be announced in parts and culminate in an event in Los Angeles this month.

BY Advocate Contributors

March 28 2012 11:16 AM ET

HEROES 1980 JERRY BROWN X560 | ADVOCATE.COM

California governor Jerry Brown, in his second run for president, appealed explicitly to LGBT voters. He called himself a "comrade in arms" in their movement. And Brown had certainly used his political career to further extend rights in California, in 1976 signing a repeal of a law that had criminalized homosexuality and in 1979 appointing the first openly gay judge in the United States. Brown had also spoken out in 1978 against the Briggs Initiative, which would have made it legal to fire any school official or teacher who openly favored gay rights. During his newest term as California governor, he signed a law in 2011 requiring the history of the LGBT rights movement to be included in school curricula. "History should be honest," he said in a statement after signing the law.
—Lucas Grindley