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Radical Faery takes flight at 91
Image
John Burnside (right) with Harry Hay in 2002.
A pioneering gay rights activist who co-founded a worldwide gay spirituality movement has died.

John Burnside, who helped found the Radical Faeries with his partner of 39 years, Harry Hay, died at his San Francisco home on Sunday, September 14. He was 91.

British-born Hay, who died in 2002, was already a pioneering gay rights activist when he met the then-married Burnside in 1963.

A communist, Hay founded America's first gay rights organisation, The Mattachine Society, in Los Angeles in 1950.

Burnside divorced after meeting Hay, and together they formed another gay rights group, the Circle of Loving Companions.

The pair’s interest in gay spirituality found voice in 1965 when they formed the Southern California Council on Religion and the Homophile.

And in 1966 in Los Angeles, Burnside and Hay planned of the world’s first gay parades, a 15 car motorcade, to protest the exclusion of gays from the US military.

In 1979, they co-founded, with Don Kilhefner, the Radical Faeries gay spirituality movement, now worldwide.

Speaking from their sanctuary near Nimbin in NSW, a spokesperson for the Australian Radical Faeries told Queensland Pride the group was saddened by the recent death of one of its founders.

“The Faeries were called into being in Arizona in 1979 by visionary gay activists such as Harry Hay and his long-term partner John, and have since spread around the globe,” Spider-cutie said.

“The Radical Faeries seek to develop the artistic, spiritual, magical and community aspects of being gay. John and Harry’s insights and radical philosophies continue to inspire us.”

Burnside was also a scientist and inventor, having created kaleidoscope-like devices such as the teleidoscope and the Symmetricon, which was used in the 1976 film, Logan’s Run.

Burnside had been diagnosed with glioblastoma brain cancer.

Donations in Burnside's memory to continue his and Hay's activist work may be made to the Harry Hay Fund, c/o Chas Nol, 174 1/2 Hartford St., San Francisco, CA 94114.

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written by Jo Harrison , October 25, 2008

Vale John Burnside. What would have have made of the following:

Imagine you are a gay man in your 80s, you have lived through the era when shock treatment, lobotomy, blackmail, sacking from your job, criminal conviction and potentially prison, were all part and parcel of being attracted to the same sex.

Here you are now living with your same sex partner at home. He is also in his 80s and is frail and needing community aged care package related services. You both live on the age pension.

You are not out to anyone, not to your relatives, or to your service providers, who are nice enough, but you are not about to take the risk. After all, the aged care industry in this country has not been forced to protect you, so why would you take the risk when you are more vulnerable than ever.

You attend Mature Age Gays meetings, and that's just about the only place you can really be yourself. Plenty of others there are just like you.

The Government finally passes the same sex relationships reforms, including amendments to the Aged Care Act. You don't list yourselves on any register and you do nothing to declare your relationship, you never have and you can't take the risk of losing the support of family members you know to be very judgemental.

Flash forward 5 years, your partner is assessed as needing to go into residential care, a devastating decision, but one you have felt was coming for some time.

You have to fill in the 5 steps to residential care kit, and be assessed by Centrelink for residential care payments and fees.

The aged care industry is still largely exempt from anti-discrimination legislation and there is research evidence that gays in residential care are afraid to assert their rights. There is no GLBT advocacy officer you can call.

Centrelink tell you that if you are not in one of a very tight list of defined relationships to the person going into residential care, your house will be counted INTO the assets test, meaning you will have to pay much more in fees and charges, and may even have to sell your home to afford these.

You are between a rock and a hard place - disclose now and have Centrelink come for 5 years backpayment of benefits to two singles rather than a couple, OR don't disclose and lose your house, or at least pay more than others with the same assets and income.

As a community we appear to see these guys as 'weak' 'getting their just deserts' 'appropriately punished' or even 'wanting it both ways' as I have been told.

I can't work out why there is not more widespread anger with those who will celebrate legislation that will allow the social security and aged care and veterans care systems to happily continue to treat people unfairly, and ignore the history of what was done to those who were victims of the times.

When the time comes and the boomers need nursing homes, what steps will we have taken to ensure that no one is afraid or forced back in the closet?

Dr Jo Harrison

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