Peter Fisher (May 19, 1944 – July 10, 2012) was an American author and gay rights activist. An alumnus of

Amherst College Amherst College ( ) is a private liberal arts college in Amherst, Massachusetts. Founded in 1821 as an attempt to relocate Williams College by its then-president Zephaniah Swift Moore, Amherst is the third oldest institution of higher educatio ...

and

Columbia University Columbia University (also known as Columbia, and officially as Columbia University in the City of New York) is a private research university in New York City. Established in 1754 as King's College on the grounds of Trinity Church in Manhatt ...

, he served in the

US Air Force The United States Air Force (USAF) is the air service branch of the United States Armed Forces, and is one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. Originally created on 1 August 1907, as a part of the United States Army Signal ...

prior to becoming an early member of the

Gay Activists Alliance The Gay Activists Alliance (GAA) was founded in New York City on December 21, 1969, almost six months after the Stonewall riots, by dissident members of the Gay Liberation Front (GLF). In contrast to the Liberation Front, the Activists Alliance s ...

, a protest group that split off from the

Gay Liberation Front Gay Liberation Front (GLF) was the name of several gay liberation groups, the first of which was formed in New York City in 1969, immediately after the Stonewall riots. Similar organizations also formed in the UK and Canada. The GLF provided a ...

after the Stonewall riots with the goal of "writing the revolution into law." Fisher led a number of the " zaps", or protests targeted at public figures, organized by the Gay Activists Alliance, as well as serving as an unofficial historian for the group. Describing Fisher, activist Bill Bahlman said, “Whenever he spoke at a GAA meeting, everybody listened. He could turn the debate on an issue around. And at demonstrations, he was larger than life.” Fisher graduated

Eastchester High School Eastchester High School is located in Westchester County, New York in the town of Eastchester. A part of the Eastchester Union Free School District, it is a former U.S. Department of Education Blue Ribbon school with approximately 1009 students ...

. He also graduated ''

magna cum laude Latin honors are a system of Latin phrases used in some colleges and universities to indicate the level of distinction with which an academic degree has been earned. The system is primarily used in the United States. It is also used in some So ...

'' and

Phi Beta Kappa The Phi Beta Kappa Society () is the oldest academic honor society in the United States, and the most prestigious, due in part to its long history and academic selectivity. Phi Beta Kappa aims to promote and advocate excellence in the liberal a ...

from Columbia University in 1969. He was pursuing a graduate degree “but resigned to become a full-time homosexual. I have yet to regret it,” he wrote in 1972. Fisher received the Stonewall Book Award in 1972 for ''The Gay Mystique: The Myth and Reality of Male Homosexuality'', later described as "one of the first books to look at the subject from the inside rather than from a heterosexual’s viewpoint." His manuscripts and papers are archived at the

Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual & Transgender Community Center The Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual & Transgender Community Center (formerly Lesbian and Gay Community Services Center), commonly called The Center, is a nonprofit organization serving the lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) population of New Yo ...

New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States New York may also refer to: Film and television * '' ...

, together with those of his partner and fellow activist Marc Rubin. Fisher and Rubin met through the Gay Activists Alliance and were together for 37 years, until Rubin's death. Never recovering from Rubin's death in 2007, Fisher committed suicide in 2012 and their mingled ashes were scattered in the back yard of the sister in

Springfield, Massachusetts Springfield is a city in the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, United States, and the seat of Hampden County. Springfield sits on the eastern bank of the Connecticut River near its confluence with three rivers: the western Westfield River, the ...

Bibliography

*''The Gay Mystique: The Myth and Reality of Male Homosexuality'' (1972) *''Special Teachers/Special Boys'' (1979) (with Marc Rubin) *''Dreamlovers'' (1980) *''Black Star'' (1983)

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Fisher, Peter 1944 births 2012 deaths 20th-century American novelists American science fiction writers American LGBT writers Amherst College alumni Columbia University alumni United States Air Force airmen American male novelists LGBT rights activists from the United States 20th-century American male writers Stonewall Book Award winners Eastchester High School alumni

Bibliography

See also

References