Rand Schrader
Rand Schrader (May 11, 1945 – June 13, 1993) was an American AIDS and gay rights activist who also served as a judge of the Los Angeles Municipal Court.
Rand Schrader | |
|---|---|
| Judge of the Los Angeles Municipal Court | |
| In office 1980 – April 1993 | |
| Appointed by | Jerry Brown |
| Personal details | |
| Born | May 11, 1945 Los Angeles, California |
| Died | June 13, 1993 (aged 48) Century City, California |
| Domestic partner | David Bohnett |
| Alma mater | University of California, Berkeley UCLA School of Law |
Early life and education
Schrader was born in Los Angeles, California.[1] He graduated from the University of California, Berkeley and then from the University of California, Los Angeles School of Law in 1973.[2]
Professional career and judicial service
After graduating from law school, Schrader was hired by Los Angeles City Attorney Burt Pines.[1] He was the first openly gay staffer to work in the Los Angeles City Attorney's office.[2]
In 1980, Schrader was appointed to the Los Angeles Municipal Court by Governor Jerry Brown.[1] Schrader was recommended to Brown by gay rights activist Sheldon Andelson.[2] Schrader served on the bench until April 1993.[1]
AIDS-related advocacy and death
Los Angeles County Supervisor Ed Edelman appointed Schrader to the Los Angeles County AIDS Commission when it was established in 1987.[2] Schrader served as chairman of the commission from 1989 to 1991.[2]
In 1991, Schrader announced that he had been recently diagnosed with AIDS.[2] He disclosed that he had tested positive for HIV in 1989 and had developed pneumocystis pneumonia in October 1991.[2] Schrader went public with his diagnosis in an attempt increase AIDS awareness and to combat discrimination and misinformation associated with AIDS.[2]
Schrader died from AIDS-related complications on June 13, 1993 in Century City, California.[1]
Shortly before his death, in May 1993, the 5P21 HIV/AIDS clinic at Los Angeles County – USC Medical Center was named in honor of him.[3] Schrader had previously advocated for the establishment of the clinic.[1][3]
Personal
Schrader's long-time partner was entrepreneur David Bohnett, who after Schrader's death used his own entire life savings and the $386,000 benefits from Schrader's life insurance to create the pioneering website GeoCities.[4] At the time of Schrader's death, they had been partnered for 10 years.[4]
References
- Obituaries: Rand Schrader, Judge And Gay Advocate, 48, The New York Times (June 15, 1993).
- Tracy Wilkinson, Municipal Court Judge Faces Challenge of AIDS - Disease Archived 2011-08-13 at the Wayback Machine, The Los Angeles Times (November 25, 1991).
- Los Angeles Clinic Named for AIDS Activist Rand Schrader, The Los Angeles Times (May 15, 1993).
- Michael Kearns, Out on the Web, LA Weekly (November 24, 1999).