The Victory of Self
BY Kevin Ewing ON December 22, 2014
by Alyssa Purvis
San Francisco, 1982. 1,350 athletes from all over the world came together to make history in the most inspiring way ever during the first ever Gay Games. This past summer, Cleveland hosted the 9th Gay Games and with the celebratory nature of the Games came 20,000 participants and over $50 million in spending. 
For the city, this was an opportunity to showcase its gems. For the Western Reserve Historical Society (WRHS), it was a way to tell the story we’ve been collecting for 23 years.
As it does with many current events in Cleveland, WRHS identified with the Gay Games through its extensive archival collections, specifically the LGBT Archives. This collection, which includes papers, documents, memorabilia, and more from the LGBT movement in Northeast Ohio, has been held by WRHS since 1991. From this archival collection, and with the help of friends at the Lesbian Gay Bisexual Transgender Center at Case Western Reserve University and the LGBT Community Center of Greater Cleveland, WRHS formed The Victory of Self, an exhibit focused on the history of the LGBT community in Northeast Ohio.
The cohesive gay community in Cleveland took on an approach of gradual change, as opposed to some of the more high-profile happenings, such as the Stonewall riots in New York City. Community centers began springing up in Greater Cleveland neighborhoods, publications informed individuals and groups of news from the local and national movements, and social hotspots formed over the course of the last 40 years. The circles of influence within the gay community have led to milestones including Cleveland Pride, the ongoing publication of the Gay People’s Chronicle, and of course Gay Games 9.
Dr. John Grabowski, who worked on the exhibit with student interns from Case Western Reserve University, once referenced an old warning about talking politics or religion in the neighborhood bar. 
The topic of the LGBT rights can sometimes be heated between those who disagree but you won’t find room for argument in the preservation of the collections at WRHS. We take our responsibility to continue telling the stories of Northeast Ohio’s people seriously; so seriously that you’ll find the papers of former political rivals and foes occupying neighboring stacks in the Research Library.
That said, there were challenges with putting The Victory of Self together. In the early stages of collecting for the LGBT archives, the challenge was to discover and open up a history that had been largely hidden or denied. The close relationships with members of the LGBT community allowed WRHS to piece together the lives of many individuals and organizations that changed the landscape of the LGBT community in Cleveland. At WRHS, we’re proud of our ability to continue telling the stories of all Clevelanders and the impacts they’ve made – large or small.
The Victory of Self will remain on display at the WRHS History Center into 2015.
For more information on the collections of WRHS, visit www.wrhs.org/research.
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