Gay Pilgrims
The first Thanksgiving at Plymouth Point in 1621 may have been attended by gay Pilgrims. According to Boston.com, in 1637 two men at Plymouth faced execution because they were “convicted of what the law books said was a grave moral crime” — being in a gay relationship. Richard Pickering, deputy director of Plimoth Plantation, the living museum of Colonial and Native American history, notes gays and lesbians “did not have the opportunity to pursue the kind of lives and identities that modern social structures allow.” Though the maximum penalty for homosexuality was death, neither men were killed. Pickering says that Alexander, who was labeled the seducer and “therefore was considered more responsible,” was branded with a hot iron and banished from the colony. Roberts was allowed to stay but he could not own land or be actively involved in politics.
