A Social Worker's Perspective on the Gay and Lesbian Community

The movement of the gay and lesbian population in the United States is one that has been in progress since the early 1900s, and is still facing overwhelming controversy and backlash today. The push for gay liberation in a country founded on Christian morals and beliefs has subsequently led to struggles over equality of marriage, adoption, jobs, and healthcare. One side of the controversy argues that every individual deserves the same rights, while the opposing mindset argues that being homosexual puts you into a group of people that is different, and will therefore be treated as such.

Life for most homosexuals during the first half of the Twentieth century was one of hiding, being ever so careful to not give away their true feelings and predilections. Although the 1920s saw a brief moment of openness in American society, that was quickly destroyed with the progress of the Cold War, and by default, that of McCarthyism. The homosexuals of the 50s “felt the heavy weight of medical prejudice, police harassment and church condemnation … [and] were not able to challenge these authorities.” They were constantly battered, both physically and emotionally, by the society that surrounded them. The very mention or rumor of one’s homosexuality could lead to the loss of their family, their livelihood and, in some cases, their

It was not until the twelfth century that homosexuality started to be condemned. This condemnation proved to live through then until now. Due to the fact that America incorporated these early views into its early laws, even the most bland of today's sex acts were seen as unlawful (“Homosexuality and Mental Health”). Since then, these laws have changed, however, there is still a primarily negative connotation on homosexuals when coming from a church or legal standpoint concerning the masses of America.

With reference to the Stonewall riots of 1969, it is important to understand that the riot by the Lesbian and Gay Rights Movement came at a time when the civil rights movement was in its high peak. The riots for equality by the Gay and Lesbian groups and activists came at a time when Americans minority groups were fighting for identity in the typical American culture. Then again, it is significant to note that the trends that surround the Stonewall riots were the intense hatred towards the homosexual individuals that had hit the United States in the 1950s and 1960s. The Gay and Lesbian people had to seek solace in Homosexual perceived bars and night clubs as they feared for their life due to their ‘awkward’ sexual orientation at the time (Ruta, 2013). Similarly, another trend that characterized the Stonewall riot was the Cold War policies that had earmarked Homosexual individuals and organization as security threats. With the rising tension due to the cold war, the United States government had blacklisted Gay and Lesbian groups and individuals as an easy target for blackmail by the Communist groups. As a result, they faced constant harassment from police in the 1940s all through to the Stonewall riot in 1969. The uprising is as a result of the civil rights movement that allowed for many minorities and interest groups to come out and fight for their rights.

In the 65-year history of LGBTQ activism in the United States, the present moment stands out on the basis of gay marriage being legalized. At no other time would an observer have imagined that the LGBTQ movement was likely to succeed in such a manner that any gender can marry any other gender with the permission by the law (Stewart-winter

This investigation assesses the New York City Stonewall Riots of 1969, concerning their influence on the rise of the modern gay rights movement, specifically regarding political emergence, social unity, and demographic shifts. The investigation will attempt to answer the following question: To what extent were the Stonewall Riots of 1969 a catalyst for the LGBT social movement in America?

Society evolves with time and some of the things we see as normal now, were seen as offensive or wrong in another decade. Until 1967, homosexuality was criminalised and people were sent to prison for things they did in private. At the time, society saw homosexual acts, even those performed in private, as offensive; and homosexuals were stigmatized. This is what Feinberg calls legal moralism: to “prohibit conduct on the ground that it is inherently immoral, although it causes neither harm

Another factor is social changes in our society. Society constantly changes and therefore has to adapt to new developments and norms. Pre 1967 homosexually was illegal in England and Wales and any adults to have homosexual intercourses would of been punished as it was considere and unlawful conduct. Although

Throughout the course of history, the topic of homosexuality and its acceptable behavior has been one of varying opinions and much heated debate. Although how tolerated homosexual behavior was all through history can differ depending on who your source is, most everyone can agree that a few large cultures were either strongly for, or against, homosexuality.

The word “homosexual” did not come around until 1869 when a “German pamphlet advocating the repeal of an anti-sodomy law” was circulated in Prussia. Those who fell under that category did their best to appear as masculine or feminine as possible as to avoid suspicion and rejection of

There are plenty of history books that talk about this community, but the most referred to stories were of Christianity and Islam. Although, there were a few dissimilarities in the sequence of events, the fact remains that God wanted to make an example of that community because of their unnatural acts, so he obliterated the whole community. Despite of what had happened to that community, there were still countless times in history where homosexuality existed, but it was still seen as unnatural. For instance, in the middle ages homosexuality was highly condemned and often thought to be the moral of the story of Sodom and Gomorrah. However, in Ancient Rome, homosexuality was socially acceptable, as long as the man played the penetrative role. There were a set of guidelines that had to be obeyed when performing such acts: first off, sex between equal citizens and soldiers was harshly penalized; secondly, the bodies of youth were off limits; and finally, male slaves, prostitutes, and entertainers were acceptable partners for the dominant male citizens to penetrate. Also in Ancient Egypt, it is perceived that the paintings reflected an example of homosexuality and that they accepted same-sex relationships. Throughout the different time periods and cultures in history, homosexuality appeared and was accepted by some societies and condemned by

Homosexual conduct between a teacher and a student was considered a valuable part of the education process. Since the children were taken care of mostly by the government, it was important to establish a lasting relationship with someone that would teach you how to become a young man. The military supported homosexuality, as they thought that one would fight harder to protect his unit if he had a lover or multiple lovers in the same unit. It was also believed to bring about a sense of comradeship. "Similarly, the Greek attitude toward sex was, for the most part, value-neutral... And though exclusive homosexuality was probably discouraged as a threat to the family, it was widely tolerated both for older men who had children and for younger men prior to marriage."-(Blumenfeld and Raymond 1988. 155) Yet, as time went on, people who performed homosexual acts were considered polluted and to have become like women, and were therefore expelled from the military. The Greeks had double standards. Even though they recognized passion and attraction towards the same sex, those who were not attracted to women were not tolerated. Therefore, if a man was homosexual, he had to already have a wife and children. These double standards came from the fact that the society had to reproduce in order to survive. Homosexuality was only tolerated if both of the men have already established a family and met their obligations to reproduce. Social status was also

Some may argue that a gay lifestyle undermines traditional values and institutions in this country. Many people hid behind this reason, whereas if they were to look further into this

Culturally, this type of behavior had no definite wrong or abnormal connotation strapped to it. As Neil Miller describes, "In the 1870s, a concept of homosexual identity--or of gay and lesbian community--was barely articulated" (Miller xvii). In America, the idea of homosexual love was beyond societal understanding. Prior to the introduction of homosexuality people were free to care about each other on levels without the constraints of any insecurity base on a the possibility of getting a label.

The history of homosexuality has a lot of stories to tell, however, the beginning of it all would begin shortly and oddly. On the Western contemporary concept of homosexuality would relatively currently be considered new during the day of time. Ideas of homosexuality and/or sexual orientation are dated during the late nineteenth century. Within this, it’s no secret that the concept of heterosexuality also dates during this time. People didn’t specifically think to “come out” as they who they were from a