What started as a riot against police brutality outside of a local bar named the Stonewall Inn has evolved into Pride — a worldwide, monthlong celebration of the LGBTQ+ community.
And while many strides have been made since that infamous brick was thrown outside Stonewall in 1969, the recent influx of anti-LGBTQ+ legislation and sentiment in America makes Pride more important than ever and reminds all of us that the fight for true equality isn’t yet over.
Read on to learn the history of the movement, the landmark cases that have brought the LGBTQ+ community closer to equality, and how you can help spread awareness of the struggles that members of the community still face.
LGBTQ+ Life Before Pride
Pride began on a summer night in 1969, but the history of the LGBTQ+ community in the United States goes back to the founding of this country.
There are instances of same-gender “marriages” from times when marriage equality was nothing but a long-distant dream. And the country’s first self-described drag queen, a formerly enslaved man named William Dorsey Swann, organized drag balls in Washington D.C. in the 1880s and 1890s and was the first American on record to resist police brutality against LGBTQ+ communities.
The 1920s and 1930s led to a cultural renaissance for gay Americans — called the “Pansy Craze” — which served as a precursor to modern LGBTQ+ nightlife and drag shows and brought awareness of queer subculture to millions of Americans.
But despite the flourishing LGBTQ+ culture, American society as a whole remained largely homophobic, both in terms of laws and public social sentiment.
How Pride Began at the Stonewall Inn
At the time of the Stonewall riots, intimate relations between members of the same gender were outlawed in every state except Illinois. LGBTQ+ people could not serve in the military or work for the United States government — most Americans know about McCarthy’s Red Scare in the 1950s, but a lesser-known element of that moral panic was the Lavender Scare, which targeted LGBTQ+ people in government agencies.
Police officers regularly conducted raids of known gay bars and locales, arresting patrons for crimes such as obscenity, lewdness, or not being dressed according to their gender. Businesses that served the queer community or had gay employees could even lose their liquor license for doing so.
Six NYPD officers entered the popular Stonewall Inn on June 28, 1969, and began arresting employees, trans women, drag performers, and other gender non-conforming individuals. Witnesses report that the night became violent when patrons resisted police brutality and faced personal injury — including lesbian and drag king Stormé DeLarverie, whose struggle against a violent cop was the moment that sparked the protest.
What followed next was a riot against bigotry and police brutality that lasted nearly a week and served as the tinderbox for the entire LGBTQ+ rights movement. Trans women Marsha P. Johnson and Sylvia Rivera arose as heroes of the first night’s riot and remained dedicated activists for their community.
In 1970, the first Pride March in New York was held on the anniversary of the Stonewall riots and LGBTQ+ Pride was born.
LGBTQ+ Legal Victories
The Stonewall riots were the spark that lit the flame of the LGBTQ+ rights movement, spread awareness, and led to social change — most of which has happened in the Supreme Court.
Here are some of the landmark cases that have changed the lives of LGBTQ+ Americans for the better:
- One, Inc. v. Olesen (1958) – In 1953, ONE: The Homosexual Magazine sued the Los Angeles postal authorities for refusing to distribute the publication on the grounds of obscenity. The Supreme Court ruled in favor of the magazine, ruling that “speech in favor of homosexuals is not inherently obscene.”
- Romer v. Evans (1996) – After Colorado attempted to amend its state constitution to prevent protected status for homosexual and bisexual Coloradans based on their sexuality, the Supreme Court ruled that this violated the “equal protection of the laws” concept in the Constitution.
- Lawrence v. Texas (2003) – Before this case, certain states still had sodomy laws — laws carried over from the days of the colonies that prohibited certain intimate acts, effectively criminalizing intimate same-gender relationships. After two men — John Geddes Lawrence Jr. and Tyron Garner — were arrested and charged for having intercourse with each other, the Supreme Court ruled that sodomy laws violate the right to privacy afforded to Americans.
- Obergefell v. Hodges (2015) – This landmark case finally gave LGBTQ+ Americans the right to marry someone of the same gender anywhere in the country. While several states had already given the right to marriage equality, it was not a federally protected right. The ruling was decided on June 26th — during Pride Month and two days short of the anniversary of the Stonewall riots.
- Bostock v. Clayton County (2020) – The Supreme Court ruled that Title IV, which prohibits sex discrimination, also prohibits employment discrimination against LGBTQ+ people based on their gender or sexuality.
The Future of LGBTQ+ Rights
While strides have been made since the beginning of the LGBTQ+ rights movement, activists are far from being able to rest easy on the laurels of progress.
Anti-LGBTQ+ legislation is on a dangerously steep incline — as of June 2022, over 300 anti-LGBTQ+ bills have been filed in states across the country. To compare that to years prior, 2018 saw 41 over the entire year.
One of the most prominent is Florida’s “Don’t Say Gay” bill (officially titled “Parental Rights in Education” bill), which prevents discussions about LGBTQ+ rights and identities in grades K-5 and makes having those discussions extremely difficult even in older grades. This bill is especially dangerous for LGBTQ+ youth, who already face higher health and safety risks than their peers and are more likely to face bullying due to their identity.
Here are some statistics about LGBTQ+ youth in schools, according to data from the CDC:
- 43% of transgender kids, 29% of gay and lesbian kids, and 31% of bisexual kids have been bullied on school property (compared to 17% of cisgender, heterosexual youth).
- 29% of transgender, 21% of gay and lesbian, and 22% of bisexual youth have attempted suicide (compared to 7% of cisgender, heterosexual youth).
- 29% of transgender kids, 16% of gay and lesbian kids, and 11% of bisexual kids have been threatened or injured with a weapon on school grounds (compared to 7% of cisgender, heterosexual kids).
Children aren’t the only ones affected by bullying; LGBTQ+ adults in the workplace often face some level of harassment, discrimination, or homophobia. In fact, 46% of LGBTQ+ workers have reported facing some level of discrimination due to their sexuality or identity. One in 4 LGBTQ+ workers had been sexually harassed at work, and 1 in 5 have been physically harassed or attacked.
The “Don’t Say Gay” bill is far from the only one of its kind — the Ohio legislature has introduced a similar “Don’t Say Gay” bill, Texas Gov. Greg Abbott effectively outlawed medically necessary gender-affirming care for trans youth, and Alabama Gov. Kay Ivey signed a transphobic bathroom bill, banned discussions of gender identity and sexuality in grades K-5, and signed a bill banning gender-affirming care for trans youth.
How to Get Involved
While the path ahead might seem daunting, Stonewall taught us that the only way to achieve progress is to stand together as a community and fight for it.
If you have the means, you could donate to organizations like The Trevor Project, a crisis intervention and suicide prevention organization for LGBTQ+ youth, or GLAD, which helps fight legal battles for LGBTQ+ rights. Even just sharing social media posts from activists and organizations can help spread awareness about crucial LGBTQ+ issues, whether it’s about the bullying LGBTQ+ youth face or ongoing legal battles in the courts.
To track incoming anti-LGBTQ+ bills, you can use this legislative tracker to keep an eye on any anti-LGBTQ+ legislation in your state and call your local representatives to make your voice heard.
And you can always show solidarity with the community by flying a rainbow flag — with pride, of course.
