-
Introduction
The Gay Liberation movement was a pro-LGBT organization dedicated to radically changing the treatment and rights of the members of the LGBT community. This timeline will focus on the events prior to and the aftermath of the infamous Stonewall riots and the impact of the Gay Liberation Movement. https://info.umkc.edu/makinghistory/wp-content/uploads/2017/08/bryant-protest-1977-08-0001-300x206.jpg -
Homosexuality is deemed as mental disorder
The American Psychiatric Association lists homosexuality as a mental disorder in the Diagnostic and Statistics Manual, ruling it as a sociopathic personality distrubance, later to be relabeled as a sexual deviation in 1968. https://www.statnews.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/05/default-645x645.jpg -
The Cooper Do-nut Riot
Located in Los Angeles, The Cooper Do-nut cafe was a hot spot for transgender people. At the time, Los Angeles law stated that it was illegal to not dress as your assigned birth. When two police officers entered the cafe asking for IDs, they were met with heavy resistance, Onlookers joined in and police eventually left with no arrests. The riots continued throughout the night and the event is considered the first modern gay uprising.
https://sayit.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2020/02/CD-5.jpg -
The Cuban Prison Protests
News of gay men being put in prison work camps in Cuba spread to the U.S, sparking outrage in the LGBT community. Pickets were held in front of the United Nations and White house to protest the treatment of the Cuban men as well as U.S. employment discrimination. https://www.nyclgbtsites.org/site/picket-at-dag-hammarskjold-plaza-fourth-ever-u-s-gay-rights-protest/ -
The Stonewall Riots
The police raided the Stonewall Inn located in lower Manhattan, New York. The raid soon turned into complete anarchy as excessive use of force enacted by the police sent patrons and nearby homeless youth into an outrage. The riots continued for a second day where the inn was further looted, vandalized and burned. The Stonewall riots became infamous and changed the course of the LGBT community forever. https://static01.nyt.com/images/2010/06/16/movies/16stonespan/16stonespan-superJumbo-v2.jpg -
The Gay Liberation movement is created
Following the events of the Stonewall riots, a new wave of empowerment washed over the LGBT community, making many feel the need to fight back against years of oppression. This led to the creation of the Gay Liberation movement. https://libcom.org/files/images/history/GLF-demo-August-1971-First-major-gay-demo-in-UK.jpg -
The Snake Pit Riot
A lesser known riot after Stonewall was the raid on the Snake Pit gay nightclub located in New York City. The nightclub operated after hours and with no alcohol or occupancy licences. Most notably, one patron, an Argentinian immigrant called Diego Viñales, attempted to escape custody and fell to his death out of fear of being deported. https://worldofwonder.net/wp-content/uploads/2019/06/snake-pit-protest.jpg -
The GLF invades the American Psychiatric Association Convention
A group called the Gay Liberation Front, also known as the GLF, interrupts the Second Annual Behavioral Modification Conference during a video demonstration electroshock conversion therapy. They took control of the conference, declaring that conversion therapy was a barbaric and form of torture. https://thumbs-prod.si-cdn.com/NDnUFTyLyw955AzBBJcYXSJiArs=/fit-in/1600x0/https://public-media.si-cdn.com/filer/73/71/7371489a-5997-4c12-955c-852a71c05256/ed4f1k.jpg -
The first gay pride
On the one year anniversary of the Stonewall riots, the first gay pride took place on Christopher street, New york. There were also gay pride marches held in Los Angeles and Chicago on the same day. https://media3.s-nbcnews.com/i/newscms/2018_40/2594301/181005-nypl-out-christopher-street-liberation-day-ew-337p_fbbf28bebc26cbf6edf68ed8b149d3fe.jpg -
Homosexuality official removed from the DSM
After much pressure from the GLF, the American Psychological Association finally removed homosexuality as a mental illness from the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual (DSM). https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/proxy/Lm1tb-KsP0ctmXYXrg9t_CIdWNAwKmlFm9NdbDt6SboHhttobErG-_LVfWVdt0fidufvJ4jdKlGboCcneMnK7L5-RcA27gZ3izsc04YQiKI0roIOUYTv7114h5-Oh3IMu7uRPBQaGova -
The Briggs Initiative was defeated
The anti-LGBT Save Our Children campaign was in full effect. While the organization did have political influence, it was unable to stop the defeat of Briggs Initiative which was to ban gays and lesbians from working in the public school system. This served as a monumental win as it ushered in a new age of political activism for the LGBT community.
https://www.bolerium.com/pictures/medium/234123.jpg
