The Gay Peoples Union (GPU) was the most important gay and lesbian rights organization in
Milwaukee during the 1970s. Taking distance from the radical politics of the New Left, its
members adopted a politically moderate approach to social change, emphasizing education and
legal reform. Publication of GPU News was critical to its
mission. Debuting in October 1971, the magazine included coverage of local and national
news, editorials, articles, book reviews, fiction and poetry. It published works by authors
and artists such as Dennis Cooper, Betty Fairchild, Arnie Kantrowitz, and Vito Russo. GPU News had an international circulation, reaching subscribers in
Canada, Europe, and South America.
In 1976, GPU sold the assets and operations of GPU News to
Liberation Publications, a Wisconsin corporation newly formed by the staff of the paper. GPU
did so on the advise of legal counsel with the goal of improving its application to the
Internal Revenue Service for a 501(c) classification as a non-profit organization. GPU News continued to serve as the news and information medium for
all activities and programs of GPU, and the editorial board and staff remained
unchanged.
Effective with the June 1976 issue, the first published by Liberation Publications, GPU News was wholly protected by copyright. Previous issues were
not copyrighted due to GPU's "commitment to the national gay community, most of whose
publications [were] (like GPU News) nonprofit in structure"
(GPU News June 1976, p. 5). The editorial board opted to
exercise its copyright in order to restrain the unauthorized reprinting of articles and
other materials from GPU News.
By 1980, the magazine's volunteer base was severely limited and it was with regret that the
editor, Eldon Murray, announced that the January 1981 issue would be the last.
