LGBT Oral History 109: Hannah Smith-Brubaker

Hannah-Smith Brubaker was born in Tioga County, Pennsylvania, and spent most of her childhood in Port Allegany, McKean County. She began to identify as a lesbian at the start of college, and she entered the political sphere for the first time when she participated in the Second National March on Washington in 1987. While on a study abroad program in Europe for about four years, Hannah worked for Onlywomen Press, a lesbian separatist book publishing company based in London. There she met Eileen, with whom she stayed for 16 years and had a son and daughter. Four years later in 2010, Hannah met Deborah, a Mennonite, with whom she is now happily married and maintaining a farm. In this interview, Hannah details her experiences of coming out as a lesbian to her friends and family, focusing upon her father, a Methodist minister. She chronicles her path of political activism, including a formal interrogation she experienced when departing from England on a plane. She also discusses the challenges of going through second parent adoption, and the importance of community, love, and acceptance in transforming the society of today.