Phyllis Lyon and Del Martin were nationally known journalists, authors and activists. In 1955, they founded Daughters of Bilitis (DOB), the oldest American lesbian organization. Founded as a social and advocacy group in San Francisco, DOB worked hard to combat harassment and laws that criminalized gay behavior. Martin’s efforts helped lead to the American Psychiatric Association’s late 1973 decision that homosexuality was not an illness.

In April 1973, the couple spoke at the University of Washington about their work, stressing how much more needed to be done to combat homophobia and to promote women’s rights. In this image, taken during their Seattle visit, Del Martin (left) and Phyllis Lyon stand on the porch of a houseboat.

Caption information source: “After 20 Years, Cause Comes of Age”, by Susan Paynter, Seattle Post-Intelligencer, April 6, 1973, page A12.
Caption information source: “Del Martin and Phyllis Lyon Interview, 1987,” Lesbian Herstory Archives Audio/Visual Collections, https://herstories.prattinfoschool.nyc/omeka/collections/show/37.