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Gerry Studds

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Gerry Eastman Studds (/ˈɡɛri/ GHERR-ee; May 12, 1937 – October 14, 2006) was an American Democratic Congressman from Massachusetts who served from 1973 until 1997. He was the first member of Congress to be openly gay. In 1983 he was censured by the House of Representatives after he admitted to what he described as a "consensual relationship" with a 17-year-old page.

Gerry Studds
Member of the
U.S. House of Representatives
from Massachusetts
In office
January 3, 1973 – January 3, 1997
Preceded byHastings Keith
Succeeded byBill Delahunt
Constituency12th district (1973–1983)
10th district (1983–1997)
Personal details
Born
Gerry Eastman Studds

(1937-05-12)May 12, 1937
Mineola, New York, U.S.
DiedOctober 14, 2006(2006-10-14) (aged 69)
Boston, Massachusetts, U.S.
Political partyDemocratic
Spouse
Dean Hara
​
(m. 2004)​
EducationYale University (BA, MA)
Gerry Studds's voice
Studds, as chair of the House Merchant Marine Committee, speaks in support of H.R.4615, the Olympic Experimental State Forest Act
Recorded August 11, 1992

Early life and career

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Gerry Studds was born in Mineola, New York to Elbridge Gerry Eastman Studds (an architect who helped design the FDR Drive in New York City) and the former Beatrice Murphy.[1] He had a brother, Colin Studds, and a sister, Gaynor (Studds) Stewart.[2] Through his father, he was a descendant of Elbridge Gerry, who served as the vice president of the United States and the governor of Massachusetts in the 1810s.[3]

Studds obtained a full scholarship to Yale University, receiving a bachelor's degree in history in 1959 and a master's degree in 1961.[4][5] While at Yale, he was a member of St. Anthony Hall.[6] After graduating, he served in the United States Foreign Service and the Kennedy White House, where he helped develop the Peace Corps.[4]

From 1965 to 1969, Studds taught history and politics at St. Paul's School, a prep school in New Hampshire.[4] He attracted a following of progressive students; the official school history described him as "a lightning rod for student discontent[]."[7] Guided by Studds, 182 upperclassmen wrote a letter to the school's conservative administration demanding reforms.[8][9] St. Paul's implemented many of the students' demands: it de-emphasized athletics, ended mandatory attendance at Sunday chapel, and eventually began admitting female students.[10] However, in 1969, the school encouraged Studds to leave under unclear circumstances (see After Congress), sweetening the deal by paying for him to attend the Harvard Graduate School of Education.[11]

While teaching at St. Paul's, Studds achieved his first major political success, of a sort. In 1968, during the Vietnam War, Studds persuaded anti-war candidate Eugene McCarthy to challenge incumbent president Lyndon Johnson in the New Hampshire presidential primary.[2] He also ran McCarthy's New Hampshire campaign operation,[4] even though St. Paul's refused McCarthy's request to grant Studds a leave of absence so he could focus on defeating Johnson.[7] McCarthy narrowly lost the New Hampshire primary to Johnson.[12] Sensing weakness, Robert F. Kennedy entered the presidential race four days later, causing Johnson to retire from electoral politics.[12][13]

Career in the United States Congress

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Electoral history

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Studds made his first run for Congress in 1970, seeking election in Massachusetts' 12th congressional district. He narrowly lost to the Republican incumbent Hastings Keith.[4] Redistricting forced Keith to retire before the 1972 election,[14] and Studds edged out the Republican William D. Weeks by just 1,118 votes.[15] Studds was dogged by rumors of homosexuality in the 1978 campaign, but nonetheless won re-election.[16] In 1983, Studds was transferred to the 10th congressional district after another round of redistricting, serving until 1997.[17]

1983 congressional page scandal

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Studds was a central figure in the 1983 congressional page sex scandal, when he and Representative Dan Crane were each separately censured by the House of Representatives for inappropriate relationships with congressional pages—in Studds' case, a 1973 sexual relationship with a 17-year-old male.[18] In addition, two other male pages testified, and Studds confirmed, that Studds had made sexual advances to them in 1973.[16][19]

During the course of the House Ethics Committee's investigation, Studds publicly acknowledged his homosexuality, thereby becoming the first openly gay Member of Congress. In an address to the House, Studds said, "It is not a simple task for any of us to meet adequately the obligations of either public or private life, let alone both, but these challenges are made substantially more complex when one is, as I am, both an elected public official and gay."[20] Although Studds disagreed with the committee's findings of improper sexual conduct, he waived his right to a public hearing in order to protect the privacy of those involved. He said that deciding not to have a hearing "presented me with the most difficult choice I have had to make in my life."[16]

Studds defended his sexual involvement as a "mutually voluntary, private relationship between adults."[16] At the time, he acknowledged that it had been inappropriate to engage in a relationship with a subordinate and that he had committed "a very serious error in judgment."[20] He would later say that "It was a damn stupid and inappropriate thing to do, and I never said it wasn't."[21] However, after Studds' death, his widower Dean Hara said that Studds had never been ashamed of the relationship.[22] In testimony to investigators, the page testified that being Studds' sexual partner made him "somewhat uncomfortable" and that "I would [rather] have had the friendship that I had with the man without the sex," but qualified his testimony by saying that his experience with Studds was not "destructive or painful."[23] The page also said that Studds neither offered him an inducement to sleep with him nor prevented him from ending the relationship.[24]

The House Ethics Committee initially recommended the less punitive option of a reprimand, which would not have cost Studds his subcommittee chairmanship on the Committee on Merchant Marine and Fisheries. However, the full House raised the penalty under discussion from reprimand to censure, by a vote of 338–87. On July 20, 1983, the House voted to censure Studds, by a vote of 420–3.[18] The three "no" votes were Bill Clay, Mervyn Dymally, and Parren Mitchell.[25]

In 2006, following the Mark Foley page scandal, pundits compared the actions of Foley and Congress in 2006 to Studds and Congress in 1983.[2][26]

Congressional career and political views

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Although Studds lost his subcommittee chairmanship as a result of the page scandal, the setback was only temporary.

According to The Washington Post, Studds' sexuality "apparently was not news to many of his constituents."[27] (His congressional district included the gay colonies of Martha's Vineyard and Provincetown.[28]) Studds received two standing ovations from supporters in his home district at his first town meeting following his censure.[29] He was re-elected to the House six more times after the 1983 censure[30] and became chairman of the full Merchant Marine and Fisheries Committee in 1992.[26]

As a Member of Congress, Studds advocated for environmental and maritime issues, AIDS funding, and civil rights, particularly for gays and lesbians. He supported protectionist policies for the Massachusetts fishing industry, and in the 1970s he "largely" drafted a ban on foreign vessels fishing within 200 miles of the U.S. coast,[31] winning him the lifelong friendship of Alaska Republican Don Young, the bill's co-author, who reportedly "hate[d] homosexuals and eastern liberals, but not Mr. Studds."[32][33] In 1992 he authored the National Marine Sanctuaries Reauthorization and Improvement Act.[34] In 1994 he joined with Ted Kennedy to introduce legislation to end discrimination based on sexual orientation in the workplace.[35]

Throughout his life, Studds maintained the anti-war views that had spurred his initial entry into electoral politics. He was an outspoken opponent of the Strategic Defense Initiative missile defense system. He also criticized the United States government's secretive support for the Contra fighters in Nicaragua.[2]

After Congress

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Later years and death

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After retiring from Congress in 1997, Studds worked as a lobbyist for the fishing industry.[36] He also served as the executive director of the New Bedford Aquarium.[37]

Studds and partner Dean T. Hara (his companion since 1991) were married in Boston on May 24, 2004, one week after Massachusetts became the first state in the country to legalize same-sex marriage.[2]

On October 14, 2006, Studds died at age 69 following a pulmonary embolism.[38] Due to the federal ban on same-sex marriage, Hara was not eligible, upon Studds' death, to receive the pension provided to surviving spouses of former members of Congress.[39] Hara later joined a federal lawsuit, Gill v. Office of Personnel Management, that successfully challenged the constitutionality of section 3 of the Defense of Marriage Act.[40]

Accolades

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When Studds retired from Congress, Don Young sponsored a bill to name the Stellwagen Bank National Marine Sanctuary after Studds. The sanctuary sits at the mouth of Massachusetts Bay.[41]

In August 2019, Studds was added to the Rainbow Honor Walk, a walk of fame in San Francisco's Castro neighborhood honoring LGBTQ people who have "made significant contributions in their fields."[42][43][44]

2018 sexual misconduct allegations

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In 2018, St. Paul's School published an investigative report concerning allegations of faculty-student sexual misconduct over the years. The investigators quoted two former SPS students who claimed that they had questionable encounters with Studds during their time at the school, and described their statements as "substantiated."[45] One of the witnesses also relayed that according to another SPS teacher, the school fired Studds in 1969 for inappropriate conduct with students; the report did not confirm or deny this claim.[45] (Before the report's publication, it was commonly believed that the school had encouraged Studds to leave due to his "anti-establishment views."[45]) Another alumnus sued SPS in 2018, alleging an additional, more serious, case of sexual misconduct.[46] A posthumous biography of Studds, published the year before SPS released the report, noted that before Studds' death, he had admitted that as a teacher, he had sometimes dealt with students "in ways that were human but neither professional nor responsible."[47]

See also

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References

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  1. ^ Jackson, Kenneth T.; Markoe, Karen; Markoe, Arnie (20 November 2009). The Scribner Encyclopedia of American Lives: 2006-2008. Charles Scribner's Sons. ISBN 9780684315751. Archived from the original on 2015-01-19. Retrieved 2015-01-19.
  2. ^ a b c d e Cave, Damien (October 15, 2006). "Gerry Studds Dies at 69; First Openly Gay Congressman". The New York Times. Archived from the original on May 25, 2012.
  3. ^ "Rep. Gerry Studds Democrat from Massachussetts [sic]". UPI. 1983-07-15. Retrieved 2024-03-19.
  4. ^ a b c d e "Gerry Eastman Studds". Lewiston Sun Journal. 2006-10-15. Archived from the original on 2024-03-19. Retrieved 2024-03-19.
  5. ^ Schneider, Mark Robert (2017). Gerry Studds: America's First Openly Gay Congressman. University of Massachusetts Press. p. 14. ISBN 978-1-62534-284-3. JSTOR j.ctv346vd8. Archived from the original on 2023-10-04. Retrieved 2024-03-19.
  6. ^ Schneider, p. 37.
  7. ^ a b Heckscher, August (1980). St. Paul's: The Life of a New England School (1st ed.). New York: Charles Scribner's Sons. p. 333.
  8. ^ Shoumatoff, Alex (2009-06-08). "A Private-School Affair". Vanity Fair. Archived from the original on 2023-09-19. Retrieved 2024-03-19.
  9. ^ Heckscher, pp. 333-34.
  10. ^ "SPS Sesquicentennial Exhibit". Ohrstrom Library. St. Paul's School. Archived from the original on 2007-09-28. Retrieved 19 January 2018.
  11. ^ Schneider, p. 47.
  12. ^ a b Glass, Andrew (2016-03-12). "McCarthy nearly upsets LBJ in New Hampshire primary: March 12, 1968". Politico. Archived from the original on 2021-05-12. Retrieved 2024-03-19.
  13. ^ Kennedy, Robert F., "Robert F. Kennedy's Announcement of his candidacy for president" Archived 2012-02-05 at the Wayback Machine (speech, Washington, D.C., 1968-03-16). Retrieved 31 Dec 2022.
  14. ^ Urbon, Steve (2005-07-22). "Hastings Keith, former U.S. representative, dies at 89". New Bedford Standard-Times. Archived from the original on 2024-03-19. Retrieved 2024-03-19.
  15. ^ "PD43+ » 1972 U.S. House General Election 12th Congressional District". PD43+. Archived from the original on 2024-03-19. Retrieved 2024-03-19.
  16. ^ a b c d Roberts, Steven V. (1983-07-15). "Ethics Panel Says 2 Congressmen Had Sexual Relations with Pages". The New York Times. Retrieved 2024-03-23.
  17. ^ "Representative Gerry E. Studds". Congress.gov. Archived from the original on 2024-03-19. Retrieved 2024-03-19.
  18. ^ a b Roberts, Steven V. (21 July 1983). "House censures Crane and Studds for sexual relations with pages". The New York Times. Archived from the original on 2018-08-10. Retrieved 2018-09-22.
  19. ^ "Report No. 98-295 (In the Matter of Representative Gerry E. Studds)" (PDF). U.S. House Committee on Ethics. 1983-07-14. Retrieved 2024-03-23.
  20. ^ a b "Housecleaning". Time. July 25, 1983. Archived from the original on November 3, 2006. Retrieved October 4, 2006.
  21. ^ Lawrence, Marylou (2018-01-05). "Biography of Gerry Studds subject of Cohasset author talk Sunday at library". Cohasset Mariner. Retrieved 2024-03-23.
  22. ^ "First openly gay person elected to Congress dies". NBC News. October 14, 2006. Archived from the original on February 15, 2020. Retrieved November 17, 2019.
  23. ^ Mackay, Robert (1983-07-14). "Pages describe sex with congressmen". UPI. Retrieved 2024-03-23.
  24. ^ "Excerpts From Committee Report on Rep. Studds and Male Page". The Washington Post. 1983-07-14. Retrieved 2024-03-23.
  25. ^ "TO AGREE TO H. RES. 266, A MEASURE CENSURING GERRY … -- House Vote #246 -- Jul 20, 1983". GovTrack.us. Retrieved 2024-03-23.
  26. ^ a b Carlson, Michael (2006-11-10). "Gerry Studds". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 2024-03-23.
  27. ^ Teeley, Sandra Evans; Pichirallo, Joe (1983-07-16). "Politicians Assess Future of Studds, Crane in Wake of Sex Report". The Washington Post. Archived from the original on 2017-08-28. Retrieved 2024-03-19.
  28. ^ Dunlap, David W. (2015-12-28). "91 Commercial Street". Building Provincetown 2020. Retrieved 2024-03-23.
  29. ^ "Studds Gets Standing Ovations At First Meeting Since Censure". Washington Post. August 12, 1983. Archived from the original on October 26, 2012. Retrieved July 6, 2017.
  30. ^ "Gerry E. Studds (D)". PD43+. Retrieved 2024-03-23.
  31. ^ Miner, John (1977-02-27). "200-Mile Limit, Starting Tuesday, Cheers New England's Fishermen". The New York Times. Retrieved 2024-03-23.
  32. ^ Mathewson, Judy (1995-11-05). "Peers, but not GOP, at odds with Studds". New Bedford Standard-Times. Retrieved 2024-03-23.
  33. ^ "U.S. Ocean Fishing Law Forged by Cold War Politics". pew.org. 2015-07-14. Retrieved 2024-03-23.
  34. ^ Schoetz, David (2006-10-15). "'He never hid anything'". Cape Cod Times. Retrieved 2024-03-23.
  35. ^ Lamb, Yvonne Shinhoster (2006-10-14). "Gerry Studds; Gay Pioneer in Congress". The Washington Post. Retrieved 2024-03-23.
  36. ^ "Gerry Studds, 69; First Openly Gay Member of Congress". Los Angeles Times. 2006-10-15. Retrieved 2024-03-23.
  37. ^ "Studds will lead New Bedford Aquarium". Cape Cod Times. Retrieved 2024-03-23.
  38. ^ Lindsay, Jay (October 15, 2006). "Studds, 1st Openly Gay Congressman, Dies". Associated Press. Archived from the original on October 20, 2006. Retrieved May 28, 2019.
  39. ^ LeBlanc, Steve (2006-10-18). "Congressman's spouse can't have pension". Washington Post. Associated Press. Archived from the original on March 4, 2016. Retrieved July 3, 2013.
  40. ^ Gerry Studds's widower: DOMA ruling gives gays 'a seat on the bus' Archived 2016-03-03 at the Wayback Machine Boston Herald. June 26, 2013. Retrieved July 3, 2013.
  41. ^ "FAQs | Stellwagen Bank National Marine Sanctuary". stellwagen.noaa.gov. Retrieved 2024-05-07.
  42. ^ Barmann, Jay (September 2, 2014). "Castro's Rainbow Honor Walk Dedicated Today". SFist. Archived from the original on August 10, 2019. Retrieved August 15, 2019.
  43. ^ Bajko, Matthew S. (June 5, 2019). "Castro to see more LGBT honor plaques". The Bay Area Reporter. Archived from the original on 2019-08-14. Retrieved 2019-08-16.
  44. ^ Yollin, Patricia (August 6, 2019). "Tributes in Bronze: 8 More LGBT Heroes Join S.F.'s Rainbow Honor Walk". KQED: The California Report. Archived from the original on 2019-08-14. Retrieved 2019-08-16.
  45. ^ a b c Casner & Edwards LLP (2018-08-18). "Independent Investigation of Sexual Misconduct at St. Paul's School - Second Supplement to Final Report" (PDF). Public Broadcasting. Archived (PDF) from the original on 2024-03-19. Retrieved 2024-03-19.
  46. ^ "Suit calls St. Paul's 'haven' for predators". The Boston Globe. Archived from the original on 2018-08-23. Retrieved 2018-08-22.
  47. ^ Schneider, p. 46.

Further reading

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U.S. House of Representatives
Preceded by Member of the U.S. House of Representatives
from Massachusetts's 12th congressional district
1973–1983 		Constituency abolished
Preceded by Member of the U.S. House of Representatives
from Massachusetts's 10th congressional district
1983–1997 		Succeeded by
Preceded by Chair of the House Merchant Marine Committee
1992–1995 		Position abolished
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