In honor of Pride Month, Google celebrates Jeanne Cordova in it doodle today June 6th.
Jeanne Córdova was a Chicana lesbian pioneer, activist, feminist and authorwho was a fundamental leader in the movement for LGBTQ+ rights.
Early life and activism
Córdova was born on July 18, 1948 in Bremerhaven, Germany, and from an early age showed his commitment to social justice and equality.
During her time in college, she began advocating for lesbian rights. While earning her master’s degree in social work at UCLA, she became president of the Los Angeles chapter of Daughters of Bilitis (DOB), a lesbian rights organization, and was one of the key organizers of the first Lesbian Conference of the West Coast in 1971.
The DOB newsletter she edited evolved into The Lesbian Tide, a national reference for the lesbian feminist generation.
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Publications and community activism
Córdova brought his passion and inclusive spirit to each of the publications he founded. In 1981, she started the Community Yellow Pages, which became the largest LGBTQ+ directory in the United States. She also co-founded the magazine Square Peg, dedicated to queer culture and literature.
Her dedication to activism and community organizing was tireless. She participated in the 1978 National Conference of the Lesbian Feminist Organization and in the campaign to defeat California’s 1986 Proposition 64, which sought to quarantine people with HIV. She also served on the board of directors of several organizations, including the Los Angeles Gay and Lesbian Press Association.
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Life in Mexico and legacy
In 1999, Córdova and his partner Lynn Harris Ballen moved to Todos Santos, Baja California Sur, Mexico.
There, Córdova worked on his book When We Were Outlaws: A Memoir of Love and Revolution and, with Ballen, he co-founded the city’s first nonprofit organization dedicated to children’s education and literacy.
Upon his return to Los Angeles, Córdova resumed his passion for journalism and writing, and together with his partner created The Lesbian Exploratorium, dedicated to queer art and history projects.
Legacy and recognition
“It is the job of young people to push the limits of society,” Córdova wrote, and she herself began doing it at a young age and never stopped. She was known by all who were touched by her life and work as a charismatic activist, and there was no aspect of her life, whether in social work, business or journalism, that was not defined by what she could do for other lesbians. , other Chicanas, other marginalized people.
Before she died, she wrote a Letter About Death to her community, where she said: “It is wonderful to have had a cause in life: freedom and dignity for lesbians.” […] With enough left undone for our daughters to reinvent themselves.” That legacy continues to inspire young LGBTQ+ activists, and her life partner, Lynn Harris Ballen, is proud to be the executor of her trust, which supports scholarships for writers and journalists, as well as lesbian/queer human rights activism in Mexico/Latin America and Southern Africa.
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