Rand Schrader

Rand Schrader
Judge of the Los Angeles Municipal Court
In office
1980 – April 1993
Appointed by Jerry Brown
Personal details
Born (1945-05-11)May 11, 1945
Los Angeles, California
Died June 13, 1993(1993-06-13) (aged 48)
Century City, California
Domestic partner David Bohnett
Alma mater University of California, Berkeley
UCLA School of Law

Rand Schrader (May 11, 1945 – June 13, 1993) was an AIDS and gay rights activist who also served as a judge of the Los Angeles Municipal Court.

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

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 6 Obituaries: Rand Schrader, Judge And Gay Advocate, 48, The New York Times (June 15, 1993).
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 Tracy Wilkinson, Municipal Court Judge Faces Challenge of AIDS - Disease, The Los Angeles Times (November 25, 1991).
  3. 1 2 Los Angeles Clinic Named for AIDS Activist Rand Schrader, The Los Angeles Times (May 15, 1993).
  4. 1 2 Michael Kearns, Out on the Web, LA Weekly (November 24, 1999).

External links

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