Matt Friday and Bruce Carlson papers
Scope and Contents
This collection contains correspondence, photographs, newspapers, notes, programs, ephemera, t-shirts and other material documenting the political activity and community involvement of Matt Friday and Bruce Carlson. Materials in the collection document their activist work and participation in LGBTQ-related organizations and events, including Bay Area Municipal Elections Committee (BAYMEC), Gay, Lesbian & Straight Educational Network (GLSEN), Monterey County Equal Opportunity Advisory Committee, Monterey County Lesbian, Gay and Bisexual Task Force, and Monterey County Pride. Also included are materials related to their involvement in the Democratic party and the campaign against California Proposition 22 (known as the Knight Initiative) in 2000, as well as documents associated with local objections to government funding for Boy Scouts of America. Also included are teaching materials collected by Friday and Carlson in support of their educational outreach activities on behalf of the LGBTQ community. This collection also contains locally published LGBTQ newspapers, including “The Paper” and “Manifesto.”
Dates
- 1991-2011
Creator
- Friday, Matt (Creator, Person)
Conditions Governing Access
The collection is available for research by appointment only. Please contact Archives and Special Collections staff in advance to request access.
Conditions Governing Use
California State University, Monterey Bay does not hold copyright to all materials in this collection. Archives and Special Collections recognizes that it is incumbent upon the researcher to procure permission to publish information from this collection from the owner of copyright.
Biographical / Historical
Matt Friday was born in 1950 in Ottumwa, Iowa and moved to the Monterey area in 1967. Friday was a co-founder of several environmental projects, a board member for the Monterey County AIDS Project (MCAP), and a frequent contributor to numerous local publications. Friday was also involved in human rights and organized educational community forums on issues such as hate crimes and racism. Friday was heavily involved in area politics, including serving as Chair of the 27th Assembly District from 1999–2003 and serving as co-President of the Bay Area Municipal Elections Committee (BAYMEC) from 2003–2004. Friday also acted as television commentator during the 2000 Los Angeles Democratic National Convention.
Bruce Carlson was born in 1942 in Pittsburg, California. Carlson moved to the Monterey Peninsula in 1986. In 1999 he became a founding board member of the Monterey County Gay, Lesbian and Straight Education Network (GLSEN). He was also a founding member of the Monterey County Coalition for Fairness and a founding board member of the Monterey County Lesbian, Gay and Bisexual Task Force. He was the co-director of Monterey’s first Gay Pride Parade in 1992. Carlson was also active in local and national Democratic politics. He held various offices and committee seats in the 27th Assembly District beginning in 1996. He became a representative for the Bay Area Municipal Elections Committee in Monterey County (BAYMEC) in 1994 and a board member in 1996. Carlson was also a delegate to the California State Convention and the Democratic National Convention in 2000.
Matt Friday and Bruce Carlson moved to Eugene, Oregon in 2005. Domestic partners since 1986, they were married in 2014, becoming the first same-sex couple to wed in Lane County, Oregon after a judge struck down the state's ban on gay marriages.
Sources:
“In Honor of Bruce Horace Carlson and Matt Friday,” Hon. Sam Farr of California in the House of Representatives, Tuesday, April 26, 2005. Congressional Record, v. 151, pt. 6, April 21, 2005 to May 5 2005.
“Interviews: Michael Fredericksen, Bill Freeman, Matt Friday and Bruce Carlson, Inez Garcia and Roberto Garcia,” Peoples Oral History Project Monterey County; http://www.peoplesoralhistoryprojectmc.org/interviews-michael-fredericksen-bill-freeman-matt-friday-and-bruce-carlson-inez-garcia-and-roberto-garcia/ (accessed 12/14/2016)
“First same-sex couple to wed in Lane County celebrates 1st anniversary,” Chris Liedle and News Staff, Tuesday, May 19th 2015, KVAL; http://kval.com/news/local/first-same-sex-couple-to-wed-in-lane-county-celebrates-1st-anniversary (accessed 12/14/2016)
Extent
6.75 Linear Feet (3 record cartons, 2 large flat boxes)
Language of Materials
English
Abstract
This collection contains correspondence, photographs, newspapers, notes, programs, ephemera, and other material documenting the political activity and community involvement of Matt Friday and Bruce Carlson. The bulk of material relates in particular to their activism on behalf of the LGBTQ community in the Monterey County region and its struggle for legal and social recognition.
Arrangement
Materials arranged in the following series:
Series 1: Community activism
Series 2: Educational involvement
Series 3: Political involvement
Series 4: Newspapers, clippings, and press
Series 5: Personal
Series 6: Scrapbooks, awards, and memorabilia
Immediate Source of Acquisition
Donated by David Reichard, 2016.
Processing Information
Collection processed by Robin Guthrie, 2017.
Creator
- Friday, Matt (Creator, Person)
- Carlson, Bruce (Creator, Person)
- Title
- Guide to the Matt Friday and Bruce Carlson papers
- Status
- Completed
- Author
- Robin Guthrie
- Date
- 2017
- Description rules
- Describing Archives: A Content Standard
- Language of description
- Undetermined
- Script of description
- Code for undetermined script
- Language of description note
- Finding aid written in English.
Repository Details
Part of the California State University, Monterey Bay Archives and Special Collections Repository
Tanimura & Antle Family Memorial Library
100 Campus Center
Seaside CA 93955 United States
archives@csumb.edu