Generations Before Me

By Lito Sandoval

I have served on the GLBT Historical Society Board of Directors for a number of years now, and am a member of the board’s executive committee. The first time I went to the GLBT Historical Society Museum, I remember seeing flyers of events I’d attended that were now in the collections. It was a little unnerving to realize how long I’d been in the city at that time.

But since the late 1980s, I’ve served as recording secretary of ACT UP San Francisco; co-chair of gay Latinx organization AGUILAS; founder of queer Latino comedy troupe “Latin Hustle”; board member of QueLACO, the Queer Latina/o Artists Coalition; president of the San Francisco Latino Democratic Club; and founder of the Queer Latinx Happy Hour. Joining the society’s board just seemed like a natural progression for someone who not only loves history but has also lived it.

As I explore our archival holdings and resouces, and consider the growth of our collections, I’d love to see/hear more pre-AIDS pandemic histories of LGBTQ Latinx folks. I came into the city as organizations like AGUILAS and ELLAS en Accion were starting in the late 1980s/early 1990s; back when 16th Street between Mission and Valencia had three queer Latinx bars. But there were generations before me who had their own organizations and gatherings. It’s devastating to me that many of those early gay Latinos were wiped out so I can’t get first-hand accounts of those days.

If asked what figures in LGBTQ history inspire me, I’d say that I tend to pull inspiration more from the many people I’ve had the pleasure of meeting as opposed to people deemed public figures or leaders. From my early queer Latino role models, playwright Jorge Ignacio Cortiñas, who I met in ACT UP; to my mentor, the late Sam Rodriguez, who was instrumental in the growth of AGUILAS while he was co-chair; from Maria Salazar, Karla Rosales, Maria Cora and the women of ELLAS en Accion; from ACT UP alumni Laura Thomas, Mike Shriver, Ingrid Nelson and Rebecca Hensler; from my Latin hustlers Jaime Cortez and Al Lujan — these are just some of the people that taught me to not only think but to act.

And then there’s my never-ending crush on Freddie Mercury that’s lasted since the 1970s.

Lito Sandoval is a member of the GLBT Historical Society Board of Directors. He works as a program manager with West Corporation and has served on many nonprofit boards in the Latinx and LGBTQ communities.