Daughters of Bilitis
Colfax between Emerson & Ogden, by Charlie's
Created By: Arianna
Sponsored By: Charlie's
While other gay rights groups, such as ONE, Inc., were open to members of different genders, they often tended to be dominated by gay men. By 1955, however, there would be at least one formal organization dedicated solely to the rights of lesbian women: the Daughters of Bilitis.
The Daughters of Bilitis was formed by Del Martin and Phyllis Lyon in 1955. Originally, the DOB was meant to be a social group that provided an alternative to lesbian bars. The lesbian bar scene was frequently the subject of police raids, while offering limited privacy. Martin, Lyon, and their friends also wanted a friendly group that was at least partially shielded from the invasive and homophobic attitudes that dominated American culture at the time.
Soon after its 1955 formation, the Daughters of Bilitis began to take on activist work. Chapters began to appear in large cities, such as New York, Los Angeles, and Chicago. Members worked to educate other women and to combat shame and internalized homophobia.
The DOB followed the Mattachine Society in advocating for a degree of cultural assimilation. By the 1960s, though, members increasingly called for more visibility and less conformity. This decade also brought more overt feminism to the organization.
Its publication, The Ladder, also grew in prominence. By the 1970s, disagreements within the organization and over The Ladder, led to the DOB’s downfall. The Daughters of Bilitis closed in 1970. The Ladder, running as a separate publication, ran out of money and ceased publication in 1972.