When students hear the voices of people who lived through history, something shifts. That’s the core idea behind the Making Gay History podcast, which draws from host Eric Marcus’ interviews with LGBTQ+ activists, leaders, and everyday people in the 1980s and 1990s.
Today, NEA and educators across many disciplines are partnering with Marcus to develop classroom-ready resources and leveled lesson plans for grades 5–12, each centered on a particular podcast episode. The lessons—featuring NEA members and presented as video companions to the podcasts—provide educators with the context and tools to bring archival LGBTQ+ history into the classroom.
Episode: “Joy and Power in Queer History”
Washington teacher Chiara Whooley created a lesson plan to go with an episode about two civil rights activists who were life partners. The interviews gave students in her middle school English classes a way to connect with history.
Podcast guests Barbara Gittings and Kay Lahusen brought their creativity, determination, and good humor to what was called the homophile movement in the 1960s and the gay liberation movement in the 1970s.
“Most gay people in New York who had any kind of income were going to the therapist, … [who was] usually trying to cure them,” Lahusen says. “See, I decided at 18 I was right, and the world was wrong.”
Whooley’s lesson examines the podcast interview as a primary source. Using the SOAR (summarize, observe, analyze, reflect) method, students build skills applicable to all nonfiction.
“Growing up in the 2010s and coming out as queer, while we made a lot of progress politically, … there were still so many stories of trauma and sadness,” Whooley shares. “I loved hearing that, yes, these two were strong protesters, but half of it was through joy.”
Episode: “Understanding True Self”
Multilingual language learner specialist and educator Alexander Tai built his lesson around Craig Rodwell, a young activist who co-created the blueprint for Pride marches. Tai, who teaches high school in Missouri, says the episode fit well into a unit on “true self.” He challenges students with a central question: Do we find our true selves, or do we create them?
His students witness Rodwell’s journey in discovering his identity and can connect this with their own experiences at a similar age. His students were captivated by Rodwell’s choices, including when he told lies, such as inventing girlfriends.
“They were very enthralled about how lying to his parents was something that he did. ... In some cultures, lying is something that you just don’t do to your parents,” Tai explains. “It was eye-opening for me to allow the students to actually engage in the episode and nitpick at certain things.”
The lesson underscores a broader truth for Tai: “I feel like using the Making Gay History episode on Craig truly opened my students’ eyes in seeing that their life journey is going to be discovery, and it’s going to be complicated at the same time.”
Episode: “Point of View as an Element of Sourcing in Social Studies”
Joshua L. Rubin, who teaches middle school social studies in Maryland, focuses his lesson on an interview with Kathleen Boatwright. In the mid-1980s, Boatwright fell in love with a woman at church, even though she was married to a man, had four children, and belonged to a staunchly anti-gay congregation. The lesson asks students to consider point of view.
Rubin sees it as a chance to help middle schoolers practice empathy. One of the hardest skills for this age group is to understand point of view, Rubin says, especially since the state curriculum often has them studying events from “a thousand years ago.”
He wants to give students something more modern and relatable. “Even though his recording was [from] 1989, it’s still a conversation that’s very relevant today,” Rubin notes.
He chose the parent-child dynamic in Boatwright’s story as an entry point. Boatwright left her husband and children to be with the woman, and was subsequently shunned by her family and community. The podcast frames her story around that difficult decision to live openly as her authentic self.
Rubin asked his students to imagine what it would be like if their mom had to make that choice. His students’ responses confirmed the impact of
the lesson.
“I had one nonbinary student [tell me] … they really appreciated just having a day when they could focus on that part of themselves in class,” Rubin recalls. Another student surprised him with gratitude. “They said ‘thank you for making me think about this.’”
Filling the void in LGBTQ+ curricula
Tai says his work with Making Gay History fills a critical gap in LGBTQ+ history. The podcasts offer perspectives missing from textbooks and provide resources to help students grapple with real-life complexity.
“It is important for students to understand that there is gay history out there, and it may be a journey for them to understand,” he says. LGBTQ+ history, Tai adds, is a vital part of U.S. history and should be included in what high school students are taught.
From archive to audio, the Making Gay History podcast brings LGBTQ+ voices into today’s classrooms. It includes historical interviews from (clockwise from left): Kathleen Boatwright, on right; Craig Rodwell, shown with his mother; and Barbara Gittings, on left, and Kay Lahusen.
How to Listen
Listen to the podcasts and check out the lesson plans here.
