Stonewall Riots: The Gay Liberation Movement
STONEWALL: AN ERA
INTRODUCTION
In the early morning hours of June 28, 1969 the streets of Greenwich Village in New York turned from the normal relaxed party scene to a nightmare of riotous proportions. In the next three days the gay liberation movement would hit an influential peak that would carry the movement into the 70’s and influence homophile history forever. Most historians agree that the Stonewall Riots were the marker for the gay liberation movement. While the events that occurred in 1969 changed the way homosexuals viewed liberation the movement began years before. In this essay, I hope to show that the Stonewall Riots became the peak of the gay liberation movement that found its origins in the 1950s.
Historians …show more content…
With the political climate as it was in the ’50s Mattachine could not become a public organization while it employed members of the Communist Party. In 1953 during the Mattachine Convention a change in leadership brought about a new policy for the organization. “Mattachine adopted a low-profile, accommodations stand that defined movement strategies for more than a decade.”14 Hal Call, one of the founders of the new Mattachine recalls: “I was one of the wheels that caused the original secret Mattachine Society to become a democratic one. Because of fear, the core of the organization was secret… We wanted to see Mattachine grow and spread, and we didn’t think this could be done as long as Mattachine was a secret organization.”15 Soon after Stonewall the Mattachine Society began to decline due to their new stance, boasting: “Evolution, not Revolution”.16 The events at the Stonewall began to usher in a new radical stance where passive actions were not welcome. The Mattachine Society was a one-of-a-kind organization that not only defied social standards, but acted as a catalyst for other gay rights organizations like the Daughters of …show more content…
The lasting legacy of the Stonewall Riots can be seen in the annual parade that began in 1970 as the Christopher Street Liberation Day March. The Parade, which was held one year after the riots, celebrates the historical event with thousands of gay citizens around the country. On June 29, 1970 the NY Times published an article calling the congregation a “protest rally”. The article estimates that between 2,000 and 20,000 activists filled Greenwich Village and Central Park. Michael Brown tells that the march “is an affirmation and declaration of our new pride.”49 The first annual march was an important result of the Stonewall Riots. It was not only the largest homosexual demonstration to that date but it also shows that the movement continued to grow even after the momentous nights of fervor in Greenwich Village. The men and women involved in the march never imagined that they could be part of a movement this
INTRODUCTION
In the early morning hours of June 28, 1969 the streets of Greenwich Village in New York turned from the normal relaxed party scene to a nightmare of riotous proportions. In the next three days the gay liberation movement would hit an influential peak that would carry the movement into the 70’s and influence homophile history forever. Most historians agree that the Stonewall Riots were the marker for the gay liberation movement. While the events that occurred in 1969 changed the way homosexuals viewed liberation the movement began years before. In this essay, I hope to show that the Stonewall Riots became the peak of the gay liberation movement that found its origins in the 1950s.
Historians …show more content…
With the political climate as it was in the ’50s Mattachine could not become a public organization while it employed members of the Communist Party. In 1953 during the Mattachine Convention a change in leadership brought about a new policy for the organization. “Mattachine adopted a low-profile, accommodations stand that defined movement strategies for more than a decade.”14 Hal Call, one of the founders of the new Mattachine recalls: “I was one of the wheels that caused the original secret Mattachine Society to become a democratic one. Because of fear, the core of the organization was secret… We wanted to see Mattachine grow and spread, and we didn’t think this could be done as long as Mattachine was a secret organization.”15 Soon after Stonewall the Mattachine Society began to decline due to their new stance, boasting: “Evolution, not Revolution”.16 The events at the Stonewall began to usher in a new radical stance where passive actions were not welcome. The Mattachine Society was a one-of-a-kind organization that not only defied social standards, but acted as a catalyst for other gay rights organizations like the Daughters of …show more content…
The lasting legacy of the Stonewall Riots can be seen in the annual parade that began in 1970 as the Christopher Street Liberation Day March. The Parade, which was held one year after the riots, celebrates the historical event with thousands of gay citizens around the country. On June 29, 1970 the NY Times published an article calling the congregation a “protest rally”. The article estimates that between 2,000 and 20,000 activists filled Greenwich Village and Central Park. Michael Brown tells that the march “is an affirmation and declaration of our new pride.”49 The first annual march was an important result of the Stonewall Riots. It was not only the largest homosexual demonstration to that date but it also shows that the movement continued to grow even after the momentous nights of fervor in Greenwich Village. The men and women involved in the march never imagined that they could be part of a movement this