Interview with William (Bill) Atkinson (1983)

Interview with William (Bill) Atkinson (1983)

Navy, gay men, oral history

In this oral history interview, Bill Atkinson, a 67 years old gay man, describes the traumatic experience of being cashiered from the navy during a period of gay witch-hunts beginning in the late 1950s. Bill describes his life before, during and after being discharged from the Navy. He was born in England in 1916 to a middle class family, and discusses a difficult childhood. During his time in the Navy, Bill moves between Ontario and the Pacific Northwest, occasionally travelling to Detroit to meet gay men at Bar 1011. After his career in the Navy, Bill took up modelling and acting to support himself, as well as managing a restaurant for a period of time. Bill discussed his involvement in the gay political community in Toronto, working for George Hislop’s political campaign in the 1980s. Topic discussed include the experience of being gay in the Navy, sexual harassment, mental health, financial insecurity, and gay politics in Toronto.

Foolscap Oral History Project

1983-07-28

John Grube

CLGA

PDF, WAV

English

Sound, text

2016-034

Toronto, Vancouver, Detroit; 1950s, 1960s, 1970s, 1980s