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Rare piece of LGBTQ history turns up on Google

Published

6 years ago

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Portrait of John Addington Symonds (Image via Wikimedia Commons)

Researchers at Baltimore’s Johns Hopkins University found themselves the beneficiaries of a lucky twist of fate when a simple Google search led them to a rare document credited with helping to lay the foundation for the gay rights movement.

Written in 1873 by English poet and historian John Addington Symonds, “A Problem in Greek Ethics” was an essay questioning why Western culture, which had modeled itself on that of classical Greece, did not embrace and accept homosexuality as the ancient Greeks had done. Fearing that a work promoting the morality of same-sex relations – which were deemed a criminal offense in 19th century England – might potentially lead to his imprisonment, Symonds had only 10 copies printed in an effort to keep it from falling into the wrong hands. Of these, five had been thought to have survived, now in the collections of libraries in the UK and US.

According to the Baltimore Sun, that assumption was abruptly proven wrong when Gabrielle Dean, a curator at Johns Hopkins, was doing research for an upcoming exhibit called “Queer Connections: The Library of John Addington Symonds.”

“I was trying to verify the authenticity of Symonds’ handwriting by comparing the example we had to samples of his handwriting in other books,” she said. “I Googled ‘John Addington Symonds’ handwriting’ and one of the hits was a brand-new listing for ‘A Problem in Greek Ethics’ from a rare book dealer.”

She shared the information with Shane Butler, director of the university’s Classics Research Lab, and the two obtained approval to purchase the book for an undisclosed price.

Butler said, “I was blown away when Gabrielle showed me the listing… The odds of coming across something so incredibly rare are practically zero.”

The find had a personal significance for Butler, who has interested in Symonds since he found a reprint of “A Problem in Greek Ethics” in a used bookstore as an undergraduate at Duke University in the early 1990s.

“I was a young gay man who was just out of the closet and I was a classics major,” he said. “Here was a book about how homosexuality was celebrated in ancient Greece and Rome. I had to have it.”

Symonds was himself attracted to men, but like most gay men of his era lived a closeted life, with a wife and four children – though his sexual orientation was, at least late in his life, something of an “open secret.” Though his name is mostly familiar today only with literary scholars, he was well-known in his time, counting such literary figures as Walt Whitman and Robert Louis Stevenson in his circle of acquaintances, and his writings in “A Problem in Greek Ethics” seem to have influenced Oscar Wilde in his defense while on trial for “gross indecency.”

Butler says, “Even if Symonds was forgotten after he died, his essay wasn’t. Pirated copies were passed hand to hand and read throughout the 20th century. The essay has been enormously influential in the struggle for gay rights.”

“There’s something sacred about a book like this,” he adds, “especially for queer students and gay faculty like myself. Just knowing that it’s there and being able to hold it and turn its pages is incredibly moving.”

The newly-discovered copy was originally given by Symonds to British scholar and explorer Sir Richard Burton; it then spent more than a century traveling between private collections before Dean’s fortuitous find, and is now on public display for the first time as the centerpiece of the “Queer Connections” exhibit at Johns Hopkins’ Eisenhower Library, which continues through March 13.

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Out & About

This queer comedy show will warm you up

Catfish Comedy to feature LGBTQ lineup

Published

14 hours ago

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January 31, 2026

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(Promotional image via Eventbrite)

Catfish Comedy will host “2026 Queer Kickoff Show” on Thursday, Feb. 5 at A League of Her Own (2319 18th Street, N.W.). This show features D.C.’s funniest LGBTQ and femme comedians. The lineup features performers who regularly take the stage at top clubs like DC Improv and Comedy Loft, with comics who tour nationally.

Tickets are $17.85 and can be purchased on Eventbrite. 

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Arts & Entertainment

Catherine O’Hara, ‘Schitt’s Creek’ star and celebrated queer ally, dies at 71

Actress remembered for memorable comedic roles in ‘Beetlejuice’ and ‘Home Alone’

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2 days ago

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January 30, 2026

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(Photo courtesy of Pop TV)

Catherine O’Hara, the varied comedic actor known for memorable roles in “Beetlejuice,” “Schitt’s Creek,” and “Home Alone,” has died at 71 on Friday, according to multiple reports. No further details about her death were revealed.

O’Hara’s death comes as a shock to Hollywood, as the Emmy award-winning actor has been recently active, with roles in both “The Studio” and “The Last of Us.” For her work in those two shows, she received Emmy nominations for outstanding supporting actress in a comedy series and outstanding guest actress in a drama series.

In 2020, O’Hara won the Outstanding Lead Actress in a comedy series award for her work in the celebrated sixth and final season of “Schitt’s Creek.” She was also known as a queer ally and icon for her theatrical and often campy performances over multiple decades. In “Schitt’s Creek,” she played Moira Rose, the wig-loving mother of David Rose (played by series creator Dan Levy). David is pansexual, but the characters around him simply accept him for who he is; the show was embraced by the LGBTQ community with how naturally David’s sexuality was written and portrayed. That show ran from 2015 to 2020 and helped bring O’Hara and her co-stars into a new phase of their careers.

In a 2019 interview with the Gay Times, O’Hara explained why the show got LGBTQ representation right: “Daniel has created a world that he wants to live in, that I want to live in. It’s ridiculous that we live in a world where we don’t know how to respect each other and let each other be. It’s crazy. Other shows should follow suit and present the world and present humans as the best that we can be. It doesn’t mean you can’t laugh, that you can’t be funny in light ways and dark ways. It’s all still possible when you respect and love each other.”

Additional credits include “SCTV Network” (for which O’Hara won a writing Emmy), “Beetlejuice Beetlejuice,” “Curb Your Enthusiasm,” “Six Feet Under,” “Best in Show,” “Home Alone 2: Lost in New York,” and “Dick Tracy.” O’Hara also lent her voice to “The Nightmare Before Christmas,” “Chicken Little,” “Monster House,” and “Elemental.” O’Hara was expected to return for Season 2 of “The Studio,” which started filming earlier this month.

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Calendar

Calendar: January 30-February 5

LGBTQ events in the days to come

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2 days ago

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January 30, 2026

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Friday, January 30

Friday Tea Time will be at 12 p.m. at the DC Center for the LGBT Community. This is a social hour for older LGBTQ+ adults. Bring your beverage of choice. For more information, contact Mac ([email protected]).

Spark Social will host “RuPaul’s Drag Race S18 Watch Party” at 8 p.m. This event will be hosted by local drag queens TrevHER and Grey, who will provide hilarious commentary and make live predictions on who’s staying and who’s going home. Stick around after the show for a live drag performance. This event is free and more details are available on Eventbrite. 

Saturday, January 31

Go Gay DC will host “LGBTQ+ Community Brunch” at 11 a.m. at Freddie’s Beach Bar & Restaurant. This fun weekly event brings the DMV area LGBTQ+ community, including allies, together for delicious food and conversation.  Attendance is free and more details are available on Eventbrite.

Sunday, February 1

Go Gay DC will host “LGBTQ+ Community and Conversation” at noon at As You Are. This event is for those looking to make more friends and meaningful connections in the LGBTQ+ community. Look for the Go Gay DC sign on the long table near the front window. Attendance is free and more details are available on Eventbrite.

Monday, February 2

“Center Aging: Monday Coffee Klatch” will be at 10 a.m. on Zoom. This is a social hour for older LGBTQ+ adults. Guests are encouraged to bring a beverage of choice. For more information, contact Adam (adamheller@thedccenter.org).

Tuesday, February 3

Universal Pride Meeting will be at 7 p.m. on Zoom. This group seeks to support, educate, empower, and create change for people with disabilities. For more information, email [email protected]. 

Wednesday, February 4

Job Club will be at 6 p.m. on Zoom upon request. This is a weekly job support program to help job entrants and seekers, including the long-term unemployed, improve self-confidence, motivation, resilience and productivity for effective job searches and networking — allowing participants to move away from being merely “applicants” toward being “candidates.” For more information, email [email protected] or visit thedccenter.org/careers.

Center Aging Women’s Social and Discussion Group will be at 7 p.m. on Zoom. This group is a place where older LGBTQ+ women can meet and socialize with one another. There will be discussion, activities, and a chance for guests to share what they want future events to include. For more details, visit the DC Center’s website. 

Thursday, February 5

The DC Center’s Fresh Produce Program will be held all day at the DC Center for the LGBT Community. People will be informed on Wednesday at 5:00 pm if they are picked to receive a produce box. No proof of residency or income is required. For more information, email [email protected] or call 202-682-2245. 

Virtual Yoga Class will be at 7 p.m. on Zoom. This free weekly class is a combination of yoga, breath work and meditation that allows LGBTQ+ community members to continue their healing journey with somatic and mindfulness practices. For more details, visit the DC Center’s website.  

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