Gay Lobby Day, also known as Gay Education Day, took place on March 23, 1976, where LGBTQ activists in Pennsylvania went to Harrisburg to lobby legislators on Gay Rights issues. The main issue targeted was the presentation of Senate Bill 743 (among other bills), which would bar Gay people, along with those with mental illnesses, from jobs in the state government and State Police. This was not only blatant discrimination against LGBTQ people, but it also categorized being Gay as having a "mental defect.” It also was not the first discriminatory bill proposed to the Pennsylvania Senate. Governor Shapp previously vetoed such bills that were passed, and was dedicated to protecting the civil rights of LGBTQ people. The goal was to approach these state legislators and have face-to-face interactions with activists, in order to humanize and discourage legislators from making laws that allowed discrimination (especially in state jobs). More than 100 of gay men and women, marked with pink triangles, gathered in the state capitol gained the attention of state legislators and their staff, as well as many people who heard about the event through newspapers, TV, or the radio. They received mostly positive responses: with about 30% of legislators reacting positively, 30% reacting negatively, and the rest being indifferent/neutral.
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Unfortunately, senate bill 743 was overwhelmingly passed in the Senate, and would pass easily in the House. The reason is clear: votes. The post-event report found that many Senators voted ‘yes’ without thinking or reading the bill. However, the lobbyists raised the consciousness of Senators and lawmakers, so that the next time they would think first. Some legislators even said that they had changed their viewpoints after talking with lobbyists.