Henry Gerber, born June 29, 1892 in Bavaria, Germany, was an early advocate for gay rights in the U.S. He emigrated to the United States in 1913 and settled in Chicago because of its large German immigrant population.
He founded the group Society for Human Rights (SHR) with John Graves, an African-American clergyman, and was granted a charter by the State of Illinois on December 10, 1924, becoming the first documented gay organization in the U.S.
Gerber also created the first known American gay publication called Friendship and Freedom, which was the SHR newsletter. However, at the time all gay publications were considered obscene until 1958 and the Friendship and Freedom last only two issues.
He died in Washington, DC December 31, 1972, at the age of 80.
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