Marcia Gallo oral history interview transcript

Oral History Interview: Marcia Gallo Interviewed by Keilina Heinz for the Lyon-Martin House Oral History Project
ABSTRACT
Dr. Marcia Gallo, is an activist and professor of history. She met Del Martin and Phyllis Lyon when working for the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) to fight against state propositions to ban teaching about queer topics and also regulating pornography in the 1970s and ‘80s. Dr. Gallo discusses getting to know Martin and Lyon best when interviewing them for her book on the Daughters of Bilitis lesbian rights organization. She describes spending the most time in the living room and kitchen of their home. She also discusses Martin and Lyon’s memories of earlier times in the home, including parties, closing the curtains of their picture window for protection, writing in the home office, etc. Dr. Gallo suggests that the home would make for an excellent writer’s retreat for grant recipients. She concludes with a discussion of her different relationships with Martin and Lyon, and the ways those relationships evolved over time, particularly her relationship with Lyon after Martin passed away. Located at 651 Duncan Street in San Francisco, the Lyon-Martin House is the former home of lesbian activists Phyllis Lyon (1924-2020) and Del Martin (1921-2008). In 2021, the City of San Francisco designated the Lyon-Martin House a City Landmark in recognition of its association, through Lyon and Martin, with the lesbian rights, homophile, and marriage equality movements.