Messer (weapon) Messer (weapon) A messer (German for "knife") is a single-edged sword with a knife-like hilt construction. While the various names are often used synonymously, messers are divided into two types: "Lange Messer" ("long knives") are one-handed swords used by Bourgeoisie (middle-class civilians) for personal self-defence. They were about a meter long and may have evolved from the "Bauernwehr" ("peasant's sidearm"). They are also known as "Großes Messer" (Great Knife). "Kriegsmesser" ("war knife") are curved weapons up to 1.5m long, used with one or two hands, and normally wielded by professional warriors of the 14th to 16th century, such as the
Henry D. Messer the group under a pseudonym, which was the most common practice for members of the organization at that time. Messer also participated in the Stonewall riots of 1969. Around 1970, Messer and House hosted a meeting with Mattachine members and New York City Councilman Eldon R. Clingan, where the members of the organization shared their firsthand accounts of discrimination with the city leader. Clingan and Councilman Carter Burden introduced a bill in 1971, which Messer helped author, that would have prohibited discrimination in employment and housing on the basis of sexual orientation in New York City. The bill was unsuccessful