Stonewall Riots Research Paper
Picture the United States as a place where self-expression was still frowned upon. A free country but you are still not allowed to love who you want to love. A place where same sex couples were discriminated against and had to hide behind closed doors and windows. A place where people are forced to conform and live unhappy unfulfilled lives because they had to marry the opposite gender that they were not attracted to. This is the way America could still be if the Stonewall Riots never happened. Thankfully, today this is not the America we know. America is the land of the free, it’s a place where self-expression is welcomed. The Stonewall Riots was a historical movement for the LGBT (Lesbians, Gays, Bisexual, and Transgender) community. The riots had many positive effects on America today such as the pride parade, LGBT rights, and the creation of Gay Liberation Front (GLF). Before the Stonewall Riots Tony Lauris, also known as “Fat Tony” by his
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friends and associates, decided to open a gay bar in Greenwich Village. Tony was the son of a conservative mafia member named Ernie Lauris. Ernie Lauris earned his fortune in traditional mafia operations and was very displeased with his son Tony Lauris decision to open a gay bar. Ernie Lauris had felt that running, what he called “Fag Bar” was the very low end of the mafia hierarchy. Ernie Lauris had high ambitions for his son Tony Lauris, by paying for him to attend the best schools in the area. Despite the high quality education Tony Lauris received, he enjoyed hanging out on the streets with his friends whose Italian accents were so thick it made them sound like actors playing mobsters in movies. Ernie Lauris’ success, his aspirations for his son, and his displeasure with his son’s decision caused father-son conflict. Once Tony Lauris’ opened the Stonewall Inn it had many problems from the start especially with the New York Police Department. At the time polices raids on gay bars occurred regularly because it was illegal to serve Gay people alcohol or for Gays to dance with one another. Also, keep in mind Greenwich Village was the main Gay area in America and was the most heavily policed. Stonewall Inn was the most popular Gay club in New York City and because of that it is the perfect foundation for a riot. The crackdown was also tied up in a dispute between the Mafia, which owned the bar, and corrupt police officers seeking payoffs for protection but it unleashed a year of protests. In 1965, the LGBT community staged a "Sip-In" at nightclubs in New York to protest a rule established by the State Liquor Authority that no more than three Gay persons be allowed in a bar at any one time. The public profile taken by some gays who felt that individuals should be able to live as they wanted without harassment. When they attempted to the raid the Stonewall Inn, they expected that they would simply make their arrests without complaint, as they had usually done in the past. But on the night of June 27, 1969, things took a turn that the police were not expecting. The LGBT community had gone weary by the police targeting them and this time however they fought back instead of submitting. The crowd watched as the Stonewall Inn employees were arrested but when the crowd watch gay customers being put in a paddy wagon, the crowd went nuts and started throwing bottles at police. The riot forced the police to take shelter in the Stonewall Inn until reinforcement arrived. The riot resulted in four injuries to policemen before the mob was dispersed, this also resulted in the Stonewall Inn being closed down. A crowd of four hundred young men and women appeared as they hurled bottles at police and chanted "Gay Power!" The Village Voice newspaper called the events "a kind of liberation, as the Gay brigade emerged from the bars, back rooms, and bedrooms of the Village and became street people." The Stonewall Riots impacted many people for example a former nun named Virginia Apuzzo who was 28 years old when Stonewall happened. Virginia Apuzzo came out publicly as lesbian after the Stonewall Riots and it inspired to leave her convent in Riverdale, New York and move to Greenwich Village. Virginia Apuzzo joined the National Gay and Lesbian Tasked force where she served as the executive director. In 1997 Bill Clinton appointed her made her the highest ranking out lesbian in the federal government by appointing her to the White House as senior staff assistant to the president for administration and management.
The Stonewall Riots also made people feel less alone and more accepted in their communities.
Thanks to those people feeling accepted they were able to start many organizations and start the fight for LGBT rights. Martin Boyce is a great example of someone who participated in the Stonewall Riots. A few months after the riots he went back to Hunter College in New York and decided that all the term papers he wrote would be gay. After college Martin Boyce moved back home to take care of his ill parents. While living at home Martin Boyce was working in restaurants to make ends meet. After his parents passed away he opened up his own restaurant called “Everybody’s Restaurant” where everyone was welcome. He and his business partner had come up with a slogan for brunch that said "We treat our customers like kings because the owners are a bunch of queens." If Boyce did not take part in the riots he might have never opened his restaurant. His restaurant brought everybody together and it was full of all love and no
hate.
The Stonewall Inn Riots left a mark on homeless LGBT 17 year old Danny Garvin; who was a regular at the Stonewall Inn and he witnessed the night of the famous riot. Danny Garvin was outraged by the injustice he was witnessing, he did not participate in on the violence but he did join the crowd of protestors who resisting the officers that were trying to clear the streets in order to stop the riots. Danny Garvin overcame his homeless and started to build a life for himself when he started to hang out with "gay activists" but he also focused on his work as a recreational therapists. The AIDS epidemic is what pulled him to becoming a Capuchin Franciscan Friar. He did that for two years then returned back to New York. He created the first drop-in HIV support group. He also set up a daycare program for crack-addicted babies. Garvin also created the largest marching contingent. Called Sober Together. It should the LGBT that they was a gay way of life outside of the bars. If Garvin hadn't been a part of the Stonewall Riots it would not have left a mark on him. He would not have founded the HIV support group, day care for crack-addicted babies, and the marching contingent "Sober Together."
Jerry Hoose was at Stonewall Inn months before the famous riot started; he was part of the Stonewall Rebellion that happened afterwards. Jerry Hoose fought back with drag queens and street kids during this time. After the Stonewall Rebellion Jerry Hoose helped start an organization called Gay Front Liberation (GLF) in 1980's and he was able to find a passion in it. For that whole year he went to every political demonstration led by the GLF. On the 40th anniversary of the Stonewall Riots Jerry Hoose went to the White House to meet President Obama. Jerry Hoose help the LGBT get their rights because of his bravery and for being vocal.
John O'Brien was part of the Stonewall Uprising he also a founding member of the GFL and joined a committee planning the first Gay Pride March. John O'Brien believes that the "growing support for LGBT rights today can be traced directly to those participants in the Stonewall Uprising who challenged power and authority and demanded respect and rights," he said. "The many people inspired by Stonewall who then became involved in the GLBT movement directly changed the horrible conditions and status of gay and lesbians, replacing fear with pride.” John O’Brien protested in Stonewall Uprising even though he did not think it would have a huge impact on History. After Stonewall Inn Riots gays and lesbians formed the Gay Liberation Front (GLF) advocated for sexual liberation for all people. They are also responsible for the first Gay Pride Week that was in June 1970 to commemorate the first anniversary of Stonewall. Stonewall still affects present day America; the event has also sparked some controversies. The most well known controversies are if LGBT community should or should not have the same rights as straight people. Some more controversies were if people in the LGBT community be allowed to legally marry and if they can openly serve in the military. Thankfully a lot of these controversies were solved due to anti-discrimination laws that were resolved because of our 44th president, Barak Obama. On June 24th, 2016 President Obama made the Stonewall Inn the first LGBT National Monument. Aggressive police, the mafia, LGBT village were major causes of the Stonewall Riots. The riots had many positive effects on America today making it acceptable in today’s society; where people no longer have to hide behind closed doors or windows.
friends and associates, decided to open a gay bar in Greenwich Village. Tony was the son of a conservative mafia member named Ernie Lauris. Ernie Lauris earned his fortune in traditional mafia operations and was very displeased with his son Tony Lauris decision to open a gay bar. Ernie Lauris had felt that running, what he called “Fag Bar” was the very low end of the mafia hierarchy. Ernie Lauris had high ambitions for his son Tony Lauris, by paying for him to attend the best schools in the area. Despite the high quality education Tony Lauris received, he enjoyed hanging out on the streets with his friends whose Italian accents were so thick it made them sound like actors playing mobsters in movies. Ernie Lauris’ success, his aspirations for his son, and his displeasure with his son’s decision caused father-son conflict. Once Tony Lauris’ opened the Stonewall Inn it had many problems from the start especially with the New York Police Department. At the time polices raids on gay bars occurred regularly because it was illegal to serve Gay people alcohol or for Gays to dance with one another. Also, keep in mind Greenwich Village was the main Gay area in America and was the most heavily policed. Stonewall Inn was the most popular Gay club in New York City and because of that it is the perfect foundation for a riot. The crackdown was also tied up in a dispute between the Mafia, which owned the bar, and corrupt police officers seeking payoffs for protection but it unleashed a year of protests. In 1965, the LGBT community staged a "Sip-In" at nightclubs in New York to protest a rule established by the State Liquor Authority that no more than three Gay persons be allowed in a bar at any one time. The public profile taken by some gays who felt that individuals should be able to live as they wanted without harassment. When they attempted to the raid the Stonewall Inn, they expected that they would simply make their arrests without complaint, as they had usually done in the past. But on the night of June 27, 1969, things took a turn that the police were not expecting. The LGBT community had gone weary by the police targeting them and this time however they fought back instead of submitting. The crowd watched as the Stonewall Inn employees were arrested but when the crowd watch gay customers being put in a paddy wagon, the crowd went nuts and started throwing bottles at police. The riot forced the police to take shelter in the Stonewall Inn until reinforcement arrived. The riot resulted in four injuries to policemen before the mob was dispersed, this also resulted in the Stonewall Inn being closed down. A crowd of four hundred young men and women appeared as they hurled bottles at police and chanted "Gay Power!" The Village Voice newspaper called the events "a kind of liberation, as the Gay brigade emerged from the bars, back rooms, and bedrooms of the Village and became street people." The Stonewall Riots impacted many people for example a former nun named Virginia Apuzzo who was 28 years old when Stonewall happened. Virginia Apuzzo came out publicly as lesbian after the Stonewall Riots and it inspired to leave her convent in Riverdale, New York and move to Greenwich Village. Virginia Apuzzo joined the National Gay and Lesbian Tasked force where she served as the executive director. In 1997 Bill Clinton appointed her made her the highest ranking out lesbian in the federal government by appointing her to the White House as senior staff assistant to the president for administration and management.
The Stonewall Riots also made people feel less alone and more accepted in their communities.
Thanks to those people feeling accepted they were able to start many organizations and start the fight for LGBT rights. Martin Boyce is a great example of someone who participated in the Stonewall Riots. A few months after the riots he went back to Hunter College in New York and decided that all the term papers he wrote would be gay. After college Martin Boyce moved back home to take care of his ill parents. While living at home Martin Boyce was working in restaurants to make ends meet. After his parents passed away he opened up his own restaurant called “Everybody’s Restaurant” where everyone was welcome. He and his business partner had come up with a slogan for brunch that said "We treat our customers like kings because the owners are a bunch of queens." If Boyce did not take part in the riots he might have never opened his restaurant. His restaurant brought everybody together and it was full of all love and no
hate.
The Stonewall Inn Riots left a mark on homeless LGBT 17 year old Danny Garvin; who was a regular at the Stonewall Inn and he witnessed the night of the famous riot. Danny Garvin was outraged by the injustice he was witnessing, he did not participate in on the violence but he did join the crowd of protestors who resisting the officers that were trying to clear the streets in order to stop the riots. Danny Garvin overcame his homeless and started to build a life for himself when he started to hang out with "gay activists" but he also focused on his work as a recreational therapists. The AIDS epidemic is what pulled him to becoming a Capuchin Franciscan Friar. He did that for two years then returned back to New York. He created the first drop-in HIV support group. He also set up a daycare program for crack-addicted babies. Garvin also created the largest marching contingent. Called Sober Together. It should the LGBT that they was a gay way of life outside of the bars. If Garvin hadn't been a part of the Stonewall Riots it would not have left a mark on him. He would not have founded the HIV support group, day care for crack-addicted babies, and the marching contingent "Sober Together."
Jerry Hoose was at Stonewall Inn months before the famous riot started; he was part of the Stonewall Rebellion that happened afterwards. Jerry Hoose fought back with drag queens and street kids during this time. After the Stonewall Rebellion Jerry Hoose helped start an organization called Gay Front Liberation (GLF) in 1980's and he was able to find a passion in it. For that whole year he went to every political demonstration led by the GLF. On the 40th anniversary of the Stonewall Riots Jerry Hoose went to the White House to meet President Obama. Jerry Hoose help the LGBT get their rights because of his bravery and for being vocal.
John O'Brien was part of the Stonewall Uprising he also a founding member of the GFL and joined a committee planning the first Gay Pride March. John O'Brien believes that the "growing support for LGBT rights today can be traced directly to those participants in the Stonewall Uprising who challenged power and authority and demanded respect and rights," he said. "The many people inspired by Stonewall who then became involved in the GLBT movement directly changed the horrible conditions and status of gay and lesbians, replacing fear with pride.” John O’Brien protested in Stonewall Uprising even though he did not think it would have a huge impact on History. After Stonewall Inn Riots gays and lesbians formed the Gay Liberation Front (GLF) advocated for sexual liberation for all people. They are also responsible for the first Gay Pride Week that was in June 1970 to commemorate the first anniversary of Stonewall. Stonewall still affects present day America; the event has also sparked some controversies. The most well known controversies are if LGBT community should or should not have the same rights as straight people. Some more controversies were if people in the LGBT community be allowed to legally marry and if they can openly serve in the military. Thankfully a lot of these controversies were solved due to anti-discrimination laws that were resolved because of our 44th president, Barak Obama. On June 24th, 2016 President Obama made the Stonewall Inn the first LGBT National Monument. Aggressive police, the mafia, LGBT village were major causes of the Stonewall Riots. The riots had many positive effects on America today making it acceptable in today’s society; where people no longer have to hide behind closed doors or windows.