Thomas Stoddard

Thomas B. Stoddard (1949 – February 12, 1997) was an American lawyer and gay rights activist. He was the executive director of Lambda Legal Defense and Education Fund from 1986 to 1992. He also served as an adjunct professor at New York University School of Law beginning in 1981.

Activism In addition to his work opposing discrimination against homosexuals, Stoddard was active in opposing discrimination against people with HIV/AIDS. He wrote a bill prohibiting discrimination against homosexuals in public accommodations that was passed by the New York City Council, and subsequently signed into law by New York City Mayor Ed Koch, in 1986; Koch later referred to the bill as "perfect".

Stoddard learned that he had Kaposi's sarcoma, an AIDS-related cancer, in 1989. He died of AIDS on February 12, 1997, at his home in Manhattan, New York.