I first encountered Jim Toy in the mid-90’s when I was a member of the City of Ypsilanti Human Relations Commission. The Commission was charged by city council to make recommendation to City Council if sexual orientation should be added to city policy for which one could not be discriminated. At the time, only Ann Arbor and a few other Michigan cities included sexual orientation in their discrimination policies. The issue was a “powder-keg” which brought out strong voices and opinions from all over the state for and against including sexual orientation in the policy. Ypsilanti became the focal point. Local and regional press outlets were covering the issue in Ypsi. Many community meetings were held which were in such high attendance, they were moved to Ypsilanti High School Auditorium. Emotions ran deep, but the one person who caught my attention at the time was Jim Toy. His passion, knowledge, wisdom, and professionalism were very apparent every time he spoke. I sought him out following a few meetings to learn more. I then learned he was an employee of the University of Michigan, which we had in common.
Over the years at U of M as I became involved in diversity issues, I continued to cross paths with Jim Toy. Again, I was always impressed with his wisdom, passion, knowledge, and professionalism. When Jim spoke, I listened. The following are the excerpts from a Detroit News article about Jim’s death.
Jim Toy, a prominent LGBTQ activist and social worker who many believe was the first man to publicly come out in Michigan, died on Jan. 1, 2022. He was 91. A trailblazer for gay rights in the state, Mr. Toy sat at nearly every table — and chanted at every protest — where questions about political, social and religious LGBTQ advancement were being asked and propelled the debate forward.
Jim Toy found himself in the middle of the Dr. Anderson abuse issue that has recently surfaced. He was also involved as an advocate and alleged victim in the UM scandal involving Robert Anderson, the late university sports doctor that more than 1,000 people, mostly men, have accused of sexual assault. Mr. Toy told Thomas Easthope, then UM’s associate vice president for student services, that Anderson was “fooling around” with men at University Health Service in 1978 or 1979, according to a report from a law firm UM hired to investigate. Last year, Mr. Toy told The Detroit News that he himself had a troubling experience with Anderson during a medical exam when he was a UM graduate student. Mr. Toy also worked with Keith Moree, a student volunteer in the Human Sexuality Office, to complain about Anderson to Easthope in late 1980 and early 1981, the report found.
Mr. Toy was a founding member of the Detroit and Ann Arbor chapters of the Gay Liberation Front, an international activist network formed in the wake of the 1969 Stonewall riots and often viewed as the birth of the modern LGBTQ rights movement. Speaking as a representative of the Detroit Gay Liberation Front, Mr. Toy was catapulted into the public sphere when, on April 15, 1970, the Chinese-American activist announced his sexuality to the world at a rally against the Vietnam War at Kennedy Square.
A year later, he helped establish and directed for over 20 years what became the Human Sexuality Office at the University of Michigan, since renamed the Spectrum Center, which for five decades has worked to support LGBTQ students and staff on campus. At the university, where he received his master’s degree in clinical social work, he also spent nearly 40 years advocating for the inclusion of gender identity, gender expression and sexual orientation as protected categories in the University of Michigan’s non-discrimination bylaw, ultimately a successful effort.
Michigan’s loss in the College Football Playoffs was disappointing but not surprising. Georgia played an outstanding game, and it was clear their players were more talented. The game showed the disparity of talent between the talent of the elite programs like Georgia. It also provides a benchmark for Michigan to meet. Whether a team from a northern state can recruit at the same level as teams from sunshine states is a question that still needs to be answered. The facts of recent years says that it will be very difficult to achieve year after year.
It had to happen. Sooner or later Betty White was going to die. She has been entertaining me and millions of others my entire life. She had a gift for making people laugh. Her role as Rose in the Golder Girls, defined the role of a dumb blonde. Only Lucile Ball had a greater impact as a female comedian. Like Lucy, Betty White will continue to entertain for many years.
What are you doing today to stop violence? What are you doing today to expand mental health services for those in need? What are you doing today to make sure your guns are not accessible to minors in your household?
Stay Safe. Social Distance. Wear your mask when indoors in public places. Schedule your vaccine and booster.
Orchid of the Day: Betty White, who provided multiple generations with laughs and smiles for over 60 years. Heaven is going to be a much funnier place now that she has arrived.
Onion of the Day: The Lions for locking up the worst record in the NFL.
Quote of the Day: “Your boundary need not always be an electric fence that shocks those that touch it. I can be a consistent light around you that announces I will be treated sacredly.” This was provided to me by my wife Leah.
Song of the Day: The Theme for Golden Girls, in memory of Betty White