History Of The Stonewall Riots

Research Question: My research question involves the history of the LGBTQ community’s relationship with law enforcement, particularly around the time when the community had little to no support or protection under the jurisdiction of the United States. I am expanding my knowledge on the Stonewall Riot’s coverage within the media to discover if the framing of the protesters as militant was used to rally support behind a police force with a heteronormative agenda, in order to point out the biases that would have been overlooked in the original coverage of this event.

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

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?

Obviously, the gay community will not stop to remember the major events leading to gay liberation in the U.S. Those who witnessed the June 28, 1969 violent demonstrations by a group of gays at the Stonewall Inn, located in the Greenwich Village near Manhattan, New York City, will forever remember the impact of that early morning hours riots against police raid in the history of gay liberation movement.

The throng became raucous as the time passed; people began throwing bottles and bricks at the police and shouting “gay power!” The riots really started when a lesbian woman who has been described as “a typical New

This newspaper article from The New York Daily News was extremely biased and homophobic which allowed us to realize how the public viewed the LGBT+ community back in 1969. The article also included interviews with police and participants of the riots that described the violence that took

On June 28, 1969 the Stonewall Riots were started in Greenwich Village at the Stonewall Inn a movement was sparked that would not be easily extinguished. The gay rights movement was started after that fateful encounter between police officers and patrons of the bar that was inside of the inn. The actual event occurred outside the inn in the late hours of the night, lasted six days, and launched the idea of sexual liberation into the view of the public. The police originally made the visit to the Stonewall Inn to investigate the claims made about the owners of the inn and

These kind of raids were not uncommon but this night would be different from the others. The patrons were so tired of getting harassed and treated badly that they began to resist and grew aggressive when the police started to arrest people. Over the next few nights there were a series of more demonstrations riots which came to be collectively known at the Stonewall Riots. The actions of the police on that night were the last straw for a group of people who had constantly dealt with oppression and marginalization and marked a change in the way that gay people across the country handled their situation. They were finished with the attitude of the 1960s that called for peaceful resistance against their lack of freedom and negative treatment; they took the fight for equal treatment into their own hands

At dawn on June 28, 1969 police raided the Stonewall Inn, a popular gay bar in Greenwich Village, New York. The raids were common in that decade, in which homosexuality was illegal in every state except Illinois. That night, however, violent demonstrations and street protests that lasted for most of the week broke. The Stonewall riots, as they became known, marked a before and after in the movements for gay civil rights in the United States and the world.

Stonewall Inn. The riots of Stonewall represent a huge turning point for the gay community, and

The 1960s and early 1970s was a period of social movements for women’s rights, African American, and gay rights. The civil rights era brought significant change of the United States through society’s defiance against government laws and injustice. The period was full of protests, riots, and parades led by civil rights leaders for black, women's, and gay rights. The social inequality of the United States brought a need for change in society and the civil rights activists of the 60s made the change happen. Martin Luther King Jr. gave his I Have a Dream speech as an activist fighting against African American segregation. Betty Friedan brought a shift in society’s views on women’s roles in society with her book, Feminist Mystique. These civil rights activists were a major part of bringing attention towards the continuous issue of inequality towards minorities in America. The civil rights movements that arose in the 1960s brought progression in societal changes in America with issues of racism, sexism, and discrimination. The era was about bringing change to the United States government and developing new societal views towards people of minorities. The Stonewall Riots fit into this large social movement with the resistance and passionate spirit of the gay community for equality and acceptance in society. The riots took place on the six nights of June 28 to July 1 in 1969 when police forces raided the Stonewall Inn in Greenwich Village, New York. The first night of the raid was a great turning point to the future of the gay population. During the late 1960’s a conflict between police authorities and the LGBT community in New York brought awareness to the discrimination of the gay community and boosted gay rights movements bringing progress towards equality for LGBT people, however a full compromise was not reached as homophobic views remained in America’s society.

In the past decades, the struggle for gay rights in the Unites States has taken many forms. Previously, homosexuality was viewed as immoral. Many people also viewed it as pathologic because the American Psychiatric Association classified it as a psychiatric disorder. As a result, many people remained in ‘the closet’ because they were afraid of losing their jobs or being discriminated against in the society. According to David Allyn, though most gays could pass in the heterosexual world, they tended to live in fear and lies because they could not look towards their families for support. At the same time, openly gay establishments were often shut down to keep openly gay people under close scrutiny (Allyn 146). But since the 1960s, people

Until the last half of the 20th century, lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender individuals were victims of discrimination in American society and in statutory laws, which limited their basic rights. On the night of June 28, 1969, police raided the Stonewall Inn, a gay bar in New York’s Greenwich Village, and arrested three drag queens by using excessive force. Bar patrons and spectators, tired of police oppression, stood up and fought back. This was the first major protest based on equal rights for homosexuals. The Stonewall Riots became a turning point for the homosexual community in the United States sparking the beginning of the gay rights movement, and encouraged lesbian, gay, bisexual and transsexual, or "LGBT," to fight for their rights.

The climate of the 1960s was turbulent. This decade was marked by many political movements, which reflected support for non-establishment themes. During this time the “sexual liberation movement” became a popular cause. This intensified social and political interest helped many disadvantaged groups to receive support and attention that previously had never been received. As part of the nation’s desire for sexual political liberation, gay liberation became visible.

When this starred to happen the government started keeping files on suspected and known homosexuals.