Del Martin and Phyllis Lyon

Dorothy “Del” Martin (1921-2008) met Phyllis Lyon (1924-2020) in Seattle in 1950. They fell in love, moved to San Francisco together, and began a life of LGBTQ activism. Their breakthrough accomplishments included co-founding the nation’s first lesbian social and political organization and helping found the first gay political club.
They did all this at a time when governments and institutions deemed gay people immoral or mentally ill. “We were fighting the church, the couch, and the courts,” Martin said.
The couple first married in 2004, when San Francisco allowed same-sex marriage. They had a second ceremony in 2008, when the state legalized their union.