Elliott Blackstone

Elliott Blackstone
Born	(1924-11-30)November 30, 1924 Chinook, Montana
Died
Nationality	American
Occupation	Police Officer
Years active	1949-1975
Known for	Work with the San Francisco LGBT community
Military career
Allegiance	United States
Service/branch	United States Navy
Battles/wars	World War II

Elliott R. Blackstone (November 30, 1924 – October 25, 2006) was a sergeant in the San Francisco Police Department and a longtime advocate for the lesbian, gay and transgender community in that city.

Early life

Born in Chinook, Montana, Blackstone served in the U.S. Navy during World War II, and was honorably discharged. In 1949, he became a San Francisco police officer and was a pioneer of what is now called community policing. In 1962, he was designated as the department's first liaison officer with the "homophile community," as it was then called. Blackstone worked within the police department to change policy and procedures directed against the LGBT community, such as entrapment of gay men in public restrooms.

LGBT advocacy

Throughout the 1960s and early 1970s, Blackstone worked closely with local LGBT activist groups such as the Mattachine Society, Daughters of Bilitis, the Vanguard gay youth group, the National Transsexual Counseling Unit, and the Council on Religion and the Homosexual. Blackstone even took up a collection at his church to buy hormones for transgender people, at a time when city-funded health clinics would not provide hormones to them.

Blackstone was also involved in many other church and community activities, and taught community policing courses at the College of Marin. At his retirement dinner in 1975, he was saluted by LGBT community leaders for his advocacy and support. In 2005, an interview with Blackstone was featured in Screaming Queens, a documentary about the 1966 Compton's Cafeteria riot. According to one source,[1]

At the 2005 world premiere at the Castro Theater, Blackstone received a standing ovation from a sold-out crowd of more than 1000 people, when he answered an audience member's question; asked why, as a straight man, he had worked so hard on behalf of LGBT rights, he said, "Because my religion teaches me to love everybody."

In June, 2006 Blackstone received commendations for his longtime advocacy work from the California State Senate, the California State Assembly, the San Francisco Police Commission, and the San Francisco Human Rights Commission. The Pride Foundation of San Francisco named him Lifetime Achievement Grand Marshal for the 2006 Gay Pride Parade.

Death

Blackstone died of a stroke later that year, just a month short of his 82nd birthday.

See also

• Compton's Cafeteria riot

External links

• Obituary of Sgt. Blackstone, San Francisco Chronicle
• Compton's Cafeteria riot web site
• "San Francisco Pride Announces Sergeant Elliot Blackstone Lifetime Achievement Grand Marshal"
• "Pride Parade Salute for an Unlikely Ally," San Francisco Chronicle
• Commendation of Sgt. Blackstone at site of riots, and dedication of granite plaque set into the sidewalk on YouTube