Beth Elliott

Elliott served as vice-president of the San Francisco chapter of the lesbian political group Daughters of Bilitis from 1971 to 1972, during which she served as editor of the chapter's newsletter, Sisters.[2] When she first joined in 1971, her right to join was heatedly debated because of the gender she was assigned at birth.[3] Yet she was accepted and served until late 1972 when accusations of sexual harassment from former friend, lesbian separatist, and anti-trans feminist activist, Bev Jo Von Dohre, led to a decisive vote.[1][4][5] The result was 35 to 28 against the inclusion of Elliott, or any trans women, in the San Francisco chapter of the DOB.[6] When Del Martin announced the 35–28 vote, the editorial staff of Sisters walked out, leaving the group over the decision.[6]

Beth Elliott continued her involvement in the women's movement and helped to create the West Coast Lesbian Conference which took place in April 1973.[4] She was on the organization committee and was asked to perform as a singer in the conference's entertainment program.[1] However, on the first night when she took the stage she met considerable opposition. Lesbian separatist group, The Gutter Dykes, had leafleted in protest of Elliott's presence, claiming she was a man, and approached the stage with hostility.[1][6][7] Other performers, Jeanne Cordova,[6] Robin Tyler, and Patty Harrison,[7] have stated that they responded by defending Elliott and established the need for a vote on whether Elliott's performance should continue.[2][7] It took over an hour to count the roughly 1,300 attendees and resulted in a reported two-thirds in favor of Elliott's performance.[1][8] Some accounts state 3:1 in Elliott’s favor while others state it as a bare majority.[6][9] Elliott gave a brief performance and went on to leave the conference.[1] The following day, keynote speaker Robin Morgan gave her address, which she had altered after the events of the previous night.[6] In the speech, titled "Lesbianism and Feminism: Synonyms or Contradictions?" Morgan referred to Elliott as a "gatecrashing...male transvestite"[1] and, using male pronouns, charged her as "an opportunist, an infiltrator, and a destroyer-with the mentality of a rapist."[1][10]

The incident at the West Coast Lesbian Conference, the largest lesbian gathering precedented,[1] left a lasting impression. Not only was Elliott emotionally and socially scarred, but the words defaming her circulated among grassroots lesbian networks and began the 'transsexual rapist' trope."[1] The event was the first time many feminists encountered the question of trans women's inclusion in the movement.[1] Elliott was left ostracized from much of the women's and lesbian community due to the controversial division emerging among feminists.[5][8][11][12]

Beth Elliott has been publishing since the mid 1970s on bisexuality, feminism, the AIDS movement, sex positivity, and transgenderism.[11][13] Additionally, Elliott is the author of several books published by ENC Press. Her 1996 memoir, Mirrors: Portrait of a Lesbian Transsexual, was described as a “classic in lesbian feminist and transgender/transsexual literary history” by the Bay Area Reporter.[14] She reprised the book in 2011, adding a new introduction and afterword as well as a chapter recounting of her experience at the West Coast Lesbian Conference.[14] She is also the author of the science fiction novel, Don’t Call it “Virtual” published in 2003.[15]

She has been involved in political work in support of gay rights and co-founded the Alice B. Toklas LGBT Club.[13] She was elected as a board member for the California Committee for Sexual Law Reform which, in 1975, supported Willie Brown to pass legislation repealing anti-gay sodomy laws in California.[11][13]

She has been a folk musician since the late 1960s and was active in the Haight-Ashbury hippie music scene in the 1970s.[11][13] Her latest work is the album entitled "Buried Treasure," released independently in 2005.[16]