A reader writes:
It's truly serendipitous that Kameny died on "National Coming Out Day." Search 'coming out day' on YouTube and watch the world changing for the better before your eyes. I hope all these kids (and late-but-greaters as well) will someday know the name Frank Kameny and understand that they stand on the shoulders of this giant.
Another writes:
I am woefully ignorant of the history of the gay rights movement and am sorry to say that I knew precious little about Frank Kameny. What strikes me in just a quick glance at information available is that he is one of the people who could be a hero to anyone, rather like a Martin Luther King, Jr. – someone who fights from a position of the positive and the possible and who commands respect because he respects himself.
A quick YouTube search showed him standing at the shoulder of President Obama as he signed the bill giving equal benefits for gay federal employees. Since Kameny in 1958 was fired from his job as a government employed astronomer for the "crime" of being gay, it was so appropriate that he was there for the signing.
Another:
I'm a public radio host/producer in California. Inspired by your "Before Stonewall" series last year, I called up Frank Kameny and interviewed him for my July 4, 2010 show. We had a wonderful conversation about his life and activism. Frank seems to have been largely overlooked by the national media – surprising, given how accessible he was, right there in Washington, DC. Anyway, our interview offers a vivid sense of who he was and what made him so remarkable. I've posted a link to it here, if you're interested.
My tribute here.
The Dish 