'History is everybody's history': Plimouth Plantation Welcomes Gay Families

Plimoth Plantation will offer a glimpse into the lives of 17th century LGBT pilgrims and Native Americans at its "Out at Plimoth Plantation" event, to be held Sept. 13.

"We are an inclusive place," said Jennifer Monac, PR manager for Plimoth Plantation. "We have an attitude of acceptance and tolerance, and we really wanted to celebrate that with a special day, so we thought that Out at Plimoth Plantation would be a great time to do it."

The day will revolve around two speaking events, each featuring topics on LGBT people in the seventeenth century, and a dinner later in the evening. The first of the two presentations, "We've Come A Long Way, Baby," starting at 2 p.m., is based on museum research and will be exploring seventeenth century tolerance of gay and lesbian people, or lack thereof, from a colonial perspective.

The second presentation, to take place at 3 p.m., is entitled "Two-Spirit is Better Than One." The topic will be presented by Kent Lebsock, a two-spirit Lakota man who is currently the NorthEast Two-Spirit Society's elder, and Harlan Pruden, a Cree man who co-founded the NorthEast Two Spirit Society. The two will speak about being gay in both historical and contemporary native America.

While Monac cannot confirm that they've dug up any specific names of gay pilgrims, it is clear from court records, anecdotal stories and a fair amount of research that there were in fact people living gay and lesbian lives in the seventeenth century.

"At Plimoth Plantation we feel that history is everybody's story," said Monac. "People want to see, they want to hear about themselves in history and whether that be someone of color or someone who is gay or lesbian, someone who is a minority also wants to know that they had a place in history as well. We think it's important that if there's something to tell we share it with the community."

At 5:30 p.m. a traditional Thanksgiving dinner buffet and social mixer will take place, featuring roasted turkey, cornbread stuffing, mashed potatoes, butternut squash, creamed onions and of course, an assortment of pies.

"We just thought that would give people a chance to have some good food and maybe meet some new people and have a good time," said Monac of the dinner.

Monac said another goal of the event is to give LGBT parents an opportunity to bring their families to the plantation for an event that is open and affirming.

"We want same-sex parent families to feel that they can come with their children for a place that's safe for them to be who they are for the day, explore the sites and really enjoy it as a family experience," she said.

Dinner reservations for Out at Plimoth Plantation are required and can be made by calling 508.476.1622 ext. 8210. Prices for dinner include admission to both Plimoth Plantation and the Mayflower II and are $47.95 for adults and $32.95 for children. If participants want to skip dinner, admission prices are discounted, at $24 for adults and $16 for children.