Pre-Gay L.A.: A Social History of the Movement for Homosexual Rights

4. The Establishment of ONE Institute (1955-60)

4 The Establishment of ONE Institute (1955–60) Realizing that our own ways are not humanly inevitable nor Godordained , but are the fruit of long and turbulent history, we may well examine all of our institutions, thrown into strong relief against the history of other civilizations, and weighing them in the balance, be not afraid to find them wanting. —Margaret Mead (from Coming of Age in Samoa, quoted in the September 1953 issue of ONE Magazine) Ousting Dale Jennings did not solve any of the problems simmering within ONE, Incorporated. But it did significantly shift the balance of power from the editor-in-chief to the senior bureaucratic administrator, Bill Lambert. Indeed, as will be seen, Jennings’s resignation seems to have shocked many into silence and deference. No one really knew precisely what transpired during the special meeting with Jennings on March 22, 1954. Although several board members were present, none seem to have discussed the occasion afterward, and this pivotal moment in the history of the organization haunted those remaining. Newcomers to the organization became especially cautious about what they said, although they felt optimistic that the corporation would endure. the establishment of one institute (1955–60) . 63 The March 22 meeting was a peculiar and rare occurrence in ONE, Incorporated ’s, history. Although it was a definitive moment, it produced a strange silence—no letter of resignation or discussion of the details survive in the corporate minutes, and the usually vociferous editors of ONE remained totally quiet regarding the matter. It was almost as if Jennings had never existed . Because of this, and given the means by which Jennings’s resignation was achieved, I consider this event a closed-door coup. As such, it is worth further elaboration because such events occur again in the future with some regularity—frequently enough to consider them a form of corporate ritual. A closed-door coup has several distinct features. Often, despite significant repercussions within the organization, only a few directors participate. Minimally, this would include a protagonist, an antagonist, and one key witness who is implicit in the action yet likely to remain silent or else support the event afterward. The antagonist may or may not stand to gain by the expulsion, or he or she may feel that the protagonist should leave for the corporation’s ultimate good. In any case, of those who enter the room, one will leave bereft of all stations and duties held within the corporation. Thus, the event qualifies as a coup—a change in governance. The closed-door coup serves as a kind of definitional ritual for an organization . Although the ousted individual will probably experience the event as a crisis or tragedy, his or her expulsion surmounts some impasse and may prevent or delay more severe factionalizing. As for whether such an event promotes the corporation’s welfare or acts to its detriment is probably a question subject to history and perspective; however, the regularity of such events suggests their crucial role in the history of some organizations. In this case, two other pivotal closed-door coup attempts followed, both in 1965, when the corporation physically and permanently divided. These events are taken up in chapter 8. As the dust settled around the office, ONE’s directors began trying on different hats. After Corky Wolf held the position pro tem for a week, Don Slater settled in as corporate secretary. On March 31, 1954, Lambert and Wolf met for a special meeting of the directors to decide who should fill Jennings’s vacated position as secretary. First, they appointed Wolf as secretary pro tem. According to ONE’s bylaws, only those who had been members of the corporation at the January 3, 1954, annual meeting would be eligible, which meant they could only consider Corbin, Sanchez, and Slater. Ben Tabor— who, according to the minutes of this March 31 meeting, had been elected as a director the prior February 21—was removed from corporate membership when the vote in which he was elected was now declared “out of order, hence 64 . pre-gay l.a. invalid.” Tabor would have to wait until the annual meeting in January to be renominated. Lambert and Wolf further decided that Sanchez should not be considered because he had served a full term as director. Corbin, serving as art editor, was also declared ineligible; thus, through the process of elimination , they appointed Don Slater...