The Home We Build
The Home We Build: A Queer Voices Zine was written by the Youth Ambassadors for Queer History at One Institute in partnership with 826LA
I Am Glad I Am Homosexual. This simple, yet incredibly powerful phrase was written on a cover of ONE Magazine in August 1958.
As the nation’s first widely distributed queer publication, ONE Magazine printed all kinds of creative pieces, articles, and the like through an LGBTQ+ lens. It was seized twice by postal authorities in the 50s for containing what they considered “obscene” content. For years, the charges were fought and eventually the case was seen before the Supreme Court. This was the first case regarding homosexuality to be seen at the highest level. (“About One”).
History was made in 1958 when ONE Magazine won their case.
I Am Glad I Am Homosexual was a loud and clear message following their landmark win, making known the amazing power and resilience of queer people. That message continues to ring proudly today through the pages of the zine you hold right now, The Home We Build.
Like the activists of the 1950s who started ONE Magazine, the authors of this publication have an important message to share: Queer and trans folks are not going anywhere.
The eight high school activists who participated in One Institute’s Youth Ambassadors for Queer History program spent a semester exploring, researching, and crafting the writing and projects you will find in this zine. They studied decades-old photographs, posters, ID cards, and books at ONE Archives at the USC Libraries and engaged in rich discussion with historians, activists, and teachers.
The students then transformed what they learned into artistic projects and academic writing. From puppets representing the 1991 ACT UP protest at the Oscars to an in-depth timeline on the history of top surgery, their pieces uncover powerful and important moments in time that cannot be forgotten and which serve as our north star for forward momentum.
Though the language has evolved over time, the future that the activists demand in their pieces embodies the spirit of the joyful and unwavering phrase from 1958: I Am Glad I Am Homosexual. During a time where queer and trans rights continue to be under attack, the work you will see in this zine, that of which these student activists are profoundly dedicated to, is proof that queer resilience continues to reign.
–Maddie Silva