Aristide "A.J." Laurent (September 15, 1941,

Magnolia Springs, Alabama Magnolia Springs is a town in south Baldwin County, Alabama, United States, in the Daphne-Fairhope-Foley metropolitan area. The town voted to incorporate in 2006. As of the 2010 census it had a population of 723. History Magnolia Springs is locat ...

– October 26, 2011,

Los Angeles, California Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the world' ...

) was an American publisher and LGBT civil rights advocate. He co-founded ''The Los Angeles Advocate'' (now known as '' The Advocate'') in 1967 with Sam Allen, Bill Rau, and Richard Mitch.

Early life

He was born in Magnolia Springs, Alabama to Duval “Buck” Laurent, a farm hand, and Elizabeth “Betty” Weeks, and was of Creole ancestry. Joining the Air Force in 1960, serving for four years as an instructor (at Keesler Air Force Base in Mississippi) and signals intelligence operator in Karamursel,

Turkey Turkey ( tr, Türkiye ), officially the Republic of Türkiye ( tr, Türkiye Cumhuriyeti, links=no ), is a transcontinental country located mainly on the Anatolian Peninsula in Western Asia, with a small portion on the Balkan Peninsula in ...

, and being discharged, he moved to California and came out.

Career

Between 1964 and 1967, he worked for KABC in Los Angeles. He allegedly participated in the 1966

Compton's Cafeteria riot The Compton's Cafeteria riot occurred in August 1966 in the Tenderloin district of San Francisco. The riot was a response to the violent and constant police harassment of drag queens and trans people, particularly trans women. The incident was o ...

in San Francisco, and participated in the riots following the police raid on Black Cat Tavern in Los Angeles. In the wake of the two incidents, he joined Steve Ginsberg's

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organization and co-founded ''The Los Angeles Advocate''. While helping to publish the early editions of the paper, he wrote a nightlife column (“Mariposas de la Noche”) under the pseudonym “P. Nutz.” In 1974, ''The Advocate'' was sold and in 1975 was relocated to the Bay Area; Laurent relocated to the Bay Area for a short time before returning to Los Angeles to establish ''NewsWest'' (1975–1977) to fill the void left by ''The Advocate''. In 1976, Laurent was one of 40 arrested after a police raid on the Mark IV Gay Bathhouse following a mistaken tip that the charity "slave auction" being held at the locale to benefit was an actual, illegal slave auction. In the 1980s, Laurent bought a printing company and participated in ACT UP demonstrations to advocate for AIDS/HIV patients. He also participated in the 1993 March on Washington. In 1996, he was diagnosed with prostate cancer and was given two years to live, but managed to outlive the expectation. In his latter years, he spent more time as an amateur genealogist who focused on Mobile Alabama Creole ancestry.

Death and legacy

He died on October 26, 2011, in Los Angeles after a long struggle with prostate cancer. Laurent's archives are held in the University Library at California State University, Northridge.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Laurent, Aristide 1941 births 2011 deaths American LGBT military personnel Deaths from prostate cancer American LGBT journalists American LGBT rights activists Louisiana Creole people People from Baldwin County, Alabama People from Los Angeles United States Air Force airmen Journalists from Alabama Journalists from California Activists from California Activists from Alabama LGBT people from Alabama 21st-century LGBT people