Lee Craig Schoonmaker (1944-2018)
From LGBTQIA+ Archives Wiki
Lee Craig Schoonmaker (December 20, 1944 – December 21, 2018) was an activist and early advocate for LGBTQ+ rights. He is known for co-founding the organization Homosexuals Intransigent! at City College of New York. Schoonmaker is also credited by some sources with popularizing the term “Gay Pride,” a phrase that would become central to the LGBTQ+ rights movement.
His views and activism generated mixed reactions within the LGBTQ+ community. While he was a passionate advocate for gay rights, reports suggest that his perspectives on other social issues—such as bisexuality, feminism, and reproductive rights—were controversial and criticized by some contemporaries.
External Resources
Tyler Albertario (2019), “Pride” and Prejudice: The Craig Schoonmaker Story
