SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA GAY AND LESBIAN YELLOW PAGES
2001-2010. Small group of five books of yellow pages for the gay and lesbian community in Southern California. The Gay and Lesbian Community Yellow Pages were published between 1981 to 2016 by a series of owners.
In 2000, the yellow pages came under the new ownership of publisher Irene Williams, who wrote in an introduction to the telephone book, “We would like to take a moment to remind you of the power that the G.L.B.T. ‘family’ has in the use of the mighty dollar…this community is a huge consumer market. Let’s support each other.” The Community Yellow Pages was founded by Jeanne Cordova (1948-2016) in 1981. She was a trailblazer in the lesbian and gay rights movement and founder of The Lesbian Tide, the first national lesbian newspaper which ceased publication in 1980. In 2005, the publication of the yellow pages was taken over by Frontiers, publishers of Southern California's oldest and largest LGBTQ+ magazine. The size of the yellow pages began to shrink, likely as more people turned to the Internet for information. After 2010-2011, the publication moved to an online only model before Frontiers ceased operations in 2016 after suffering for several years through new, controversial ownership that attempted to expand the readership to heterosexual men and filing for bankruptcy in 2013.
This group includes the 2001, 2003, 2005-2006, 2006-2007, and 2010-2011 editions.
These gay yellow pages play an important role in understanding the history of the LGBTQ+ community and provide a unique perspective on socio-economics issues. Several advertisers declared they were gay owned and operated, while others provided services unique to the community, such as medical personnel offering AIDS support services. Among the biggest advertises at the front of the books were always lawyers. In the early 2000s, adds included language about avoiding jail for sex crimes and lewd conduct. This language was absent just a few years later.
The books are overall in very good or better condition, with some occasional light wear. Item #79495
Price: $200.00