Peter Rosenstein, a longtime D.C. activist and Washington Blade columnist, has published his first book, “Born This Gay: My Life of Activism, Politics, Travel, and Coming Out,” reflecting on a lifetime of fighting for LGBTQ equality and other experiences. He recounts meeting presidents and even a life-changing encounter with Martin Luther King, Jr.

It’s a powerful read from the perspective of a gay elder who overcame persecution, survived the AIDS epidemic, and lived to see a remarkable transformation in how America treats its LGBTQ citizens.

The book is available at Barnes and Noble as well as on Amazon in various formats, including kindle, soft-cover, and hard-cover. 

Rosenstein will be interviewed about the book, and his life, by WTOP journalist Jimmy Alexander at Foundry United Methodist Church, 1500 16^th St., N.W., on Thursday, June 6 between 6-8 p.m. It is an open event at an affirming church.

Rosenstein answered questions about the book for the Blade; his responses have been slightly edited for length.

WASHINGTON BLADE: Why did you write this book and why now?

PETER ROSENSTEIN: There are a few reasons. As many know, I enjoy writing, and do much with my regular Blade columns, travel blogs, and theater reviews. I had thought about writing a memoir for a number of years, and began to plan some chapters while I was still working full time. As I put down random thoughts, and experiences, it became clear to me if I wrote a memoir it would have to include my coming out story. That made sense as I was fighting for LGBTQ+ rights. I always knew I was fighting for those rights for future generations, and it made sense to me that my story could be something young people could maybe see something in, to help them live better and more honest lives. I grew up without much money, and in the closet, and still made a good life for myself. In recent years, as we faced Trump and his cult, I realized my talking about how much working for civil rights, women’s rights, the rights of the disability community, and finally my own, enhanced my life. Maybe I could inspire others to do the same.  As to timing, when I was diagnosed with cancer a few years ago, I realized life wasn’t endless. When with luck, and good healthcare at NIH, I survived, it was time to get serious about writing this book. 

BLADE: Who’s your audience for the book?

ROSENSTEIN: My audience is, I hope, a lot of people, but I guess any author would say that. First, it is for my friends, who will actually learn things about me they may not know. Then it is for other first-generation Americans, whose parents are also immigrants, who may see themselves in some of how I lived my life. Then it is for young people, who may find something in my life to help them, as they move forward living theirs. It is for the LGBTQ+ community, to remind them, and teach young people, it wasn’t always the way it is today. And for those young people, who may be trying to figure out who they are, and for their parents, hopefully supporting their children, as they become their true selves. 

BLADE: How long did it take to write and what was your process?

ROSENSTEIN: It took me years to do this book. I never kept a journal, so I began the process by setting up the chapters, and then trying to remember the things that happened in the different stages of my life. That wasn’t all that easy; trying to remember accurately what happened 60 years ago, when sometimes you can’t remember what you had for breakfast yesterday. There were times I thought I remembered something, and then looked up a date, or place, and realized I remembered it wrong. I apologize if there are things in the book others remember differently. This is my life, as I remember it. It is why I don’t use a lot of names in the book. Those who find stories about them in the book, will know who they are. 

The actual writing took about three years. I never set a time aside each day to write. I interspersed writing of the book with my other writing. I actually got a lot done on the cruises I love to take. There I wouldn’t be distracted. Actually, I would get up early each morning, open the balcony door, have coffee, juice, and a bagel, delivered to my cabin, and then write for a few hours. 

BLADE: Given all the change you’ve lived through on LGBTQ rights, what surprised you most? And what keeps you up at night?

ROSENSTEIN: There are so many things that have surprised me. I lived in the closet for nearly half my life. I never believed how open we in the LGBTQ+ community could be today. I hid behind a tree at my first gay Pride in 1981 so as not to have my picture taken. Then was honored as a Pride Hero in 2016, riding in a convertible toward the front of the parade. I lived through the AIDS crisis, and lost so many friends but saw our community come together in such wonderful ways. I love seeing so many young men and women coming out early and living their lives to the fullest. I joined the fight to allow gays in the military, and have many friends who benefitted. I remember working for Rep. Bella S. Abzug (D-N.Y.) when she introduced the first Equality Bill in 1974, while I was still deep in the closet, and know it still hasn’t passed today. That gives me pause. I was honored to help lead the fight for marriage equality in D.C., and excited when the Supreme Court made it the law of the land. But it gives me pause when I recognize in 37 states that we can be married on Sunday, and thrown out of our apartments, and fired from our jobs, on Monday. I am thrilled when I see young people being open and out, but then listen to Republican governors and Trump and his MAGA cult threaten our progress. We need only look to the reversal of Roe v. Wade, to know we have to be ever vigilant to protect the rights we have won for the LGBTQ+ community. 

BLADE: There are many queer memoirs out there. What’s unique about your story?

ROSENSTEIN: I am not claiming my story is totally unique, but I am proud my story involves not only working for LGBTQ+ rights, but working for civil rights, women’s rights, and the rights of the disability community. I have been given such great opportunities to do these things, living in exciting times. From meeting and talking to Martin Luther King Jr., as a 16-year-old high school senior, to teaching elementary school in Harlem, to working for the amazing Bella S. Abzug, and then in the Carter administration. 

I had the chance to volunteer for and meet the brilliant Hillary Rodham Clinton, and volunteer for and meet Bill Clinton and Barack Obama, among so many other amazing people. I had the chance to make a difference in D.C. by helping to write the platforms, and elect, a number of D.C. mayors. Then working for 35 years as CEO of healthcare, and education, non-profits. Add to this my travels beginning at age 13 to a Boy Scouts Jamboree in Colorado Springs, driving across country twice, getting body painted and wearing flowers in my hair to hear Janice Joplin and Big Brother and the Holding Company, traveling the world from China to the Galapagos, from Ibiza to Mykonos, to going through the Panama Canal. It has been an amazing life, and it is fun to now share it with others.

Excerpt from the introduction to “Born This Gay” by Peter Rosenstein:

This is my story, that of a first-generation American whose life has often been one surprise after another. I never had a structured life plan, but instead, I’ve lived my life to the fullest in many ways. I could never have imagined at sixteen that I would, in the course of my life, meet six presidents and have a conversation with Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. I consider myself fortunate to have had all the spectacular experiences I’ve had and been given so many opportunities to work to make a positive difference in people’s lives. My story may resonate with other first-generation Americans because we have a shared history in which our parents came to the United States in search of better lives, whether they’d fled turmoil at home or had simply heard the streets of America were paved in gold for all who were willing to work hard. My parents, Dorrit and Heinz, escaped from Hitler and the Holocaust… 

It’s my hope that others, especially young people, can find something in the story of my experiences that will help them create opportunities to build their own future. Maybe reading about my work and the challenges I’ve faced can help someone make the most of their own potential. And not only might my journey as a first-generation American help in enlightening the reader, it’s also possible that the story of my journey through life might provide some comfort and direction for those in the LGBTQ+ community in trying to determine whom they were born to be. If it does, then they may be able to come out and live their truth at a much younger age than I was when I did so, leading them to live fuller and happier lives. Since my youth, significant progress has been achieved in fostering acceptance of the LGBTQ+ community. I am proud to have helped drive some of the advancements that led to this progress. Hopefully, these advancements—as well as my journey, as I’ve detailed it in this book—will help questioning readers feel comfortable enough to become out and proud…

When I was a boy growing up in a lower-middle-class Jewish home in Washington Heights, a neighborhood in upper Manhattan, New York City, I understood how much my parents suffered just for being Jewish. That knowledge drew me to community activism and then politics. I saw these things as a way to make life better for others and help ensure that what my parents experienced in Europe wouldn’t occur here in the United States. I was convinced it couldn’t—until Donald Trump was elected president. Watching what he and his administration did during his presidency and what he and his cult continue to do today has been a wake-up call. Seeing him condone some of the worst of the far-right agenda makes me wonder if it could all happen here. Seeing eleven people slaughtered in a synagogue in Pittsburgh and a rabbi and his family attacked in their home in New York brought home to me the reality that it could. The rise in antisemitism is frightening. Those events, as well as the slaughter of nine Black people in a church in Charlotte and forty-nine people in a gay nightclub in Orlando, not to mention other atrocities, have only spurred me to work harder to ensure this is not what America will stand for. It’s not an America I want to leave to future generations…

Hopefully, those who read my story will take from it something to help them more readily accept who they are and understand that in each of us there is good. I also hope that readers will come away with the understanding that their wanting to live a great life should not interfere with their meeting the responsibility to better the lives of others; rather, it should compel one to work for the benefit of society in both large and small ways. We can only hope that what people remember about us is the good we did during our short time here on Earth. The brevity of that time allotted to each of us came home to me in the past few years as I faced cancer, which, luckily, I have survived. In this story, I will share some of my amazing experiences while traveling around the United States and the world. I’ll discuss my passion for activism, politics, policy, and people. This passion has allowed me to meet and work with so many who have influenced me and have played roles in how I live my life. You don’t need to be rich to live a rich and full life. Working to make life better for others will consequently make your own life better. So here begins the story of how so many people, along with small and large events, have helped to make me who I am and have allowed me to live a life full of fun, excitement, activism, politics, and policy. Here we go!

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