Lou Sullivan
Encyclopedia
Louis Graydon Sullivan born Sheila Jean Sullivan, was an American
author
and activist known for his work on behalf of trans men. He founded FTM International, the first exclusively FTM organization and is largely responsible for the modern acknowledgment that sexual orientation
and gender identity
are totally different concepts.
. After working as a secretary for the Slavic Languages Department at the University of Wisconsin, Sullivan and his boyfriend moved to San Francisco. Sullivan started taking male hormones in 1978, then changed his name and took a job at a sporting goods store. He had chest reconstruction in 1980 and genital surgery in 1986. That year he was diagnosed with HIV
, and he died of AIDS
in 1991.
Sullivan wrote the first guidebook for FTM persons, and also a biography of the San Francisco FTM, Jack Bee Garland. Sullivan was instrumental in demonstrating the existence of trans men attracted to men.
(formerly the Gay and Lesbian Historical Society) in San Francisco. His personal and activist papers are preserved in the institution's archives as collection no. 1991-07; the papers are fully processed and available for use by researchers, and a finding aid is posted on the Online Archive of California. The Historical Society has displayed selected materials from Sullivan's papers in a number of exhibitions, notably "Man-i-fest: FTM Mentoring in San Francisco from 1976 to 2009," which was open through much of 2010 in the second gallery at the society's headquarters at 657 Mission St. in San Francisco, and "Our Vast Queer Past: Celebrating San Francsico's GLBT History," the debut exhibition in the main gallery at the society's GLBT History Museum that opened in January 2011 in San Francisco's Castro District.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
author
Author
An author is broadly defined as "the person who originates or gives existence to anything" and that authorship determines responsibility for what is created. Narrowly defined, an author is the originator of any written work.-Legal significance:...
and activist known for his work on behalf of trans men. He founded FTM International, the first exclusively FTM organization and is largely responsible for the modern acknowledgment that sexual orientation
Sexual orientation
Sexual orientation describes a pattern of emotional, romantic, or sexual attractions to the opposite sex, the same sex, both, or neither, and the genders that accompany them. By the convention of organized researchers, these attractions are subsumed under heterosexuality, homosexuality,...
and gender identity
Gender identity
A gender identity is the way in which an individual self-identifies with a gender category, for example, as being either a man or a woman, or in some cases being neither, which can be distinct from biological sex. Basic gender identity is usually formed by age three and is extremely difficult to...
are totally different concepts.
Life and career
Sullivan grew up in Milwaukee, WisconsinMilwaukee, Wisconsin
Milwaukee is the largest city in the U.S. state of Wisconsin, the 28th most populous city in the United States and 39th most populous region in the United States. It is the county seat of Milwaukee County and is located on the southwestern shore of Lake Michigan. According to 2010 census data, the...
. After working as a secretary for the Slavic Languages Department at the University of Wisconsin, Sullivan and his boyfriend moved to San Francisco. Sullivan started taking male hormones in 1978, then changed his name and took a job at a sporting goods store. He had chest reconstruction in 1980 and genital surgery in 1986. That year he was diagnosed with HIV
HIV
Human immunodeficiency virus is a lentivirus that causes acquired immunodeficiency syndrome , a condition in humans in which progressive failure of the immune system allows life-threatening opportunistic infections and cancers to thrive...
, and he died of AIDS
AIDS
Acquired immune deficiency syndrome or acquired immunodeficiency syndrome is a disease of the human immune system caused by the human immunodeficiency virus...
in 1991.
Sullivan wrote the first guidebook for FTM persons, and also a biography of the San Francisco FTM, Jack Bee Garland. Sullivan was instrumental in demonstrating the existence of trans men attracted to men.
Personal & activist papers
Sullivan was a founding member and board member of the GLBT Historical SocietyGLBT Historical Society
The Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual, Transgender Historical Society maintains an extensive archive of materials relating to the history of LGBT people in the United States, with a focus on the LGBT communities of San Francisco and Northern California...
(formerly the Gay and Lesbian Historical Society) in San Francisco. His personal and activist papers are preserved in the institution's archives as collection no. 1991-07; the papers are fully processed and available for use by researchers, and a finding aid is posted on the Online Archive of California. The Historical Society has displayed selected materials from Sullivan's papers in a number of exhibitions, notably "Man-i-fest: FTM Mentoring in San Francisco from 1976 to 2009," which was open through much of 2010 in the second gallery at the society's headquarters at 657 Mission St. in San Francisco, and "Our Vast Queer Past: Celebrating San Francsico's GLBT History," the debut exhibition in the main gallery at the society's GLBT History Museum that opened in January 2011 in San Francisco's Castro District.
External links
- Guide to the Louis Graydon Sullivan Papers, 1755-1991 (bulk 1961-1991). Online Archive of California.
- A Gender Variance Who's Who
- Man-i-Fest (from archives of GLBT Historical Society) outhistory.org