Bob Basker
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Robert Sloan Basker, commonly known as Bob Basker (born Solomon Basker; September 30, 1918, in
East Harlem East Harlem, also known as Spanish Harlem, or , is a neighborhood of Upper Manhattan in New York City, north of the Upper East Side and bounded by 96th Street to the south, Fifth Avenue to the west, and the East and Harlem Rivers to the eas ...
,
New York City New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on one of the world's largest natural harbors. The city comprises five boroughs, each coextensive w ...
– April 6, 2001) was a
civil rights Civil and political rights are a class of rights that protect individuals' political freedom, freedom from infringement by governments, social organizations, and private individuals. They ensure one's entitlement to participate in the civil and ...
activist. He first became active in the student peace movement in the 1930s and was politically active throughout his life.


Activism

Raised in an
Orthodox Jew Orthodox Judaism is a collective term for the traditionalist branches of contemporary Judaism. Theologically, it is chiefly defined by regarding the Torah, both Written and Oral, as literally revealed by God on Mount Sinai and faithfully tran ...
ish home, Basker joined the US Army in December 1941, after the
attack on Pearl Harbor The attack on Pearl HarborAlso known as the Battle of Pearl Harbor was a surprise military strike by the Empire of Japan on the United States Pacific Fleet at Naval Station Pearl Harbor, its naval base at Pearl Harbor on Oahu, Territory of ...
deeply affected him. It was at this time in his life that he changed his name to Robert (Bob) Basker. After his tour of duty and
honorable discharge A military discharge is given when a member of the armed forces is released from their obligation to serve. Each country's military has different types of discharge. They are generally based on whether the persons completed their training and the ...
, Basker became active in the Civil Rights and
Anti-Vietnam War Opposition to United States involvement in the Vietnam War began in 1965 with demonstrations against the escalating role of the United States in the Vietnam War, United States in the war. Over the next several years, these demonstrations grew ...
Movements. In 1961, Basker was responsible for securing a home for the first black family in the all-white suburb of
Skokie, Illinois Skokie (; formerly Niles Center) is a Village (United States), village in Cook County, Illinois, United States. According to the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, its population was 67,824. Skokie lies approximately north of Chicago's dow ...
, and was instrumental in the struggle for integrated housing. In 1965, Basker, who was gay co-founded Mattachine Midwest, one of the first homosexual rights organizations in America, and was its first president under the assumed name Bob Sloan
Chicago Gay and Lesbian Hall of Fame
As an active Progressive member of the Democratic Party, Basker had a unique talent for forming coalitions with both organizations and influential individuals. As a fighter for civil rights, he was an active member of many organizations, including the
National Organization for Women The National Organization for Women (NOW) is an American feminist organization. Founded in 1966, it is legally a 501(c)(4) social welfare organization. The organization consists of 550 chapters in all 50 U.S. states and in Washington, D.C. It ...
, the
NAACP The National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) is an American civil rights organization formed in 1909 as an interracial endeavor to advance justice for African Americans by a group including W. E. B. Du&nbs ...
, the
American Civil Liberties Union The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) is an American nonprofit civil rights organization founded in 1920. ACLU affiliates are active in all 50 states, Washington, D.C., and Puerto Rico. The budget of the ACLU in 2024 was $383 million. T ...
, Veterans For Peace, and was a Charter Officer of the Alexander Hamilton Post #448 of the
American Legion The American Legion, commonly known as the Legion, is an Voluntary association, organization of United States, U.S. war veterans headquartered in Indianapolis, Indiana. It comprises U.S. state, state, Territories of the United States, U.S. terr ...
.Aside from championing the issue of
LGBT equality Rights affecting lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and queer (LGBTQ) people vary greatly by country or jurisdiction—encompassing everything from the legal recognition of same-sex marriage to the death penalty for homosexuality. Not ...
, Basker also fought for
prisoners' rights The rights of civilian and military prisoners are governed by both national and international law. International conventions include the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights; the United Nations' Minimum Rules for the Treatment ...
, the legalization of
medical marijuana Medical cannabis, medicinal cannabis or medical marijuana (MMJ) refers to Cannabis (drug), cannabis products and cannabinoid, cannabinoid molecules that are prescription drug, prescribed by physicians for their patients. The use of cannabi ...
, and the availability of abortion. In the final years of his life, he was employed by the
San Francisco San Francisco, officially the City and County of San Francisco, is a commercial, Financial District, San Francisco, financial, and Culture of San Francisco, cultural center of Northern California. With a population of 827,526 residents as of ...
District Attorney In the United States, a district attorney (DA), county attorney, county prosecutor, state attorney, state's attorney, prosecuting attorney, commonwealth's attorney, or solicitor is the chief prosecutor or chief law enforcement officer represen ...
’s office.


Later life

On September 28, 1998, the San Francisco Board of Supervisors passed a resolution commending Basker on his 80th birthday for his years of commitment and service to the citizens of San Francisco and the Gay/Lesbian/Bisexual/Transgender community of San Francisco. He was also recognized as a long time activist for labor, gay rights, and medical marijuana. Basker drew together a variety of groups to work together for the common cause of getting California voters to pass the 1996 medical marijuana law,
Proposition 215 Proposition 215, or the Compassionate Use Act of 1996, is a California law permitting the use of medical cannabis despite marijuana's lack of the normal Food and Drug Administration testing for safety and efficacy. It was enacted, on November ...
. Basker died April 6, 2001, of heart failure at age 82. On April 9, 2001, the San Francisco Board of Supervisors adjourned its meeting out of respect to his memory.


Recognition

*
Chicago LGBT Hall of Fame The Chicago LGBT Hall of Fame (formerly Chicago Gay and Lesbian Hall of Fame) is an institution founded in 1991 to honor persons and entities who have made significant contributions to the quality of life or well-being of the LGBT community in Ch ...
(1993)


References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Basker, Bob 1918 births 2001 deaths American LGBTQ rights activists Jewish American military personnel Gay Jews Activists from New York City American LGBTQ military personnel People from East Harlem Gay military personnel United States Army personnel of World War II 20th-century American Jews 20th-century American LGBTQ people