Lgbt Diversity : The Lgbt Community

The history of the gay rights movement goes as far back as the late 19th century. More accurately, the quest by gays to search out others like themselves and foster a feeling of identity has been around since then. It is an innovative movement that seeks to change existing norms and gain acceptance within our culture. By 1915, one gay person said that the gay world was a "community, distinctly organized" (Milestones 1991), but kept mostly out of view because of social hostility. According to the Milestones article, after World War II, around 1940, many cities saw their first gay bars open as many homosexuals began to start a networking system. However, their newfound visibility only backfired on them, as

The 1960’s was a decade of great change in America, from civil rights for African Americans to equal rights for women, the American people were rising up and discovering that their voice in the political discourse was just as important as those they elected to office. One other such group that awakened and challenged the existing status quo that kept them silent and scared were the lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) communities across the country. From the first large-scale associations of LGBT individuals that formed in San Francisco in the 1950’s to the political and social groups that came to be following the Stonewall Riots of 1969, they would speak out and not allow themselves to be kept down anymore. The aim of this paper is to establish the events and opinions that led up to the uprising at the Stonewall Inn such as perceived and real discrimination by police, medical professionals, and society itself, what actually happened at Stonewall, and how they sparked the modern LGBT movement in the United States over the next half century to the present day.

There are certainly various points in history that can be construed as trailblazing for the lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender community. One event in particular, however, sparked awareness and a call to action that previously could never have been conceptualized in the United States. This unforgettable incident, the Stonewall riots of 1969, altered the public’s view of the gay community and arguably jumpstarted the next revolution in an entirely new civil rights movement.

The following thesis will lay out the progression in the LGBTQIA movement along with the deficits that these individuals have encountered throughout history. An interdisciplinary perspective through historical,

The LGBTQ community has struggled for decades to receive equal treatment but despite many advancements, this group of people is still not treated justly. The prevalent discrimination and prejudice enacted against the LGBTQ community can be witnessed on accounts of the Stonewall Riots and laws that affect the community such as not allowing gay men to donate blood, sexual orientation in connection to the military, et cetera. The gay rights movement has united to eradicate these issues through support of the LBGTQ community and to help people understand the process, timing, advantages, dangers, and pitfalls of coming out, as well as recent local and international rulings of the Supreme Court on same-sex marriage and the methods, laws, and attitudes of having children.

It is often a misconception that the Stonewall Riots marked the beginning of the gay rights movement. In actuality, the riots served as a vital catalyst for the birth of widespread activism in the LGBT community, but did not mark the movement’s birth. Before Stonewall, there were leftist lobbyists in the Mattachine Society pushing for law reform and there was the lesbian organization, Daughters of Bilitis, who published The Ladder in order to garner acceptance in society.9 This homophile movement was conservative in its actions, working within the system’s rules in effort to gain societal acceptance.9

Homosexuality has been an issue for the public for an extremely long time dating back to even Ancient Rome and Greek. Especially with the birth of Christianity, the religious society has been persecuting anyone claiming homosexuality, forcing people to hide their own sexuality for centuries. It is important to understand and know the past of the homsexuality to understand the reason for their fight and the mentality of their opposition. Homosexuality has never been accepted into the norms of society and was even viewed as a mental disease by the American Psychiatric Association (Bowman). Not until a few decades ago has the movement for gay rights began to kick off. The event that really set off the movement was the Stonewall Riot of 1969. “New York’s gay community had grown weary of the police department targeting gay clubs, a majority of which had already been closed. The crowd on the street watched quietly as Stonewall’s employees were arrested, but when three drag queens and a lesbian were forced into the paddy wagon, the crowd began throwing bottles at the police” (“Stonewall”). This event is regarded as the foundation for the modern gay rights movement including the formation of many gay, lesbian, and bisexual civil rights organizations.

LGBT history has changed the way society works in the United States and has had an impact around the world. The homosexual community came as an impact to the world during the early 1900’s. They were considered different; odd, ill, and weak, but little did we know the effects it would have in today’s society and politics. The war, queer, and AIDs movements seem to relatively impact members of the gay and lesbian community the most. In an series of interviews in “Word is Out” conducted by Nancy Adair and Casey Adair, the reader is introduced into the lives of Pam, Rusty, and Pat; lesbian women living within their true identity during the mid-1900’s. Their stories consist of broken family relationships, marriage failure, and gender roles. To help one understand the dynamics of their relationships and lives, John D’Emilo talks about the effects of war and how it structures and damages the gay community and their opportunity for equality. Elizabeth Davis speaks about the Lesbian experience in public spaces that exposes many to find their character by associating with those that fit best to their community in “Lesbian Bar Culture in the 1930’s and 1940’s”. The LGBT community for centuries has won the spotlight in the news and many articles published in well know newspapers, but what many never get to hear or see are the struggle that many homosexuals face. Both gays and lesbians in the United States have received backlash because of their race, gender, and social class. The

There is a need for increased culturally meaningful mental health services specific to the LGBTQ community. Members of the LGBTQ community are at increased risk for a number of mental health problems and

They also kept their sexuality a secret because of fear of not being able to get a job (Wolf, 2004). Social and religious forces caused doctors to try to find a “cure” for homosexuality, this further distressed gays in their everyday life (Wolf, 2004). Many gays abused alcohol and other drugs in other to cope with the emotional strain that society was putting upon them; homosexuals were seen as outsiders and drug addicts after that (Wolf, 2004). It was until 1924 that the first gay rights organization was founded (Adams, 1997). But in the 1950’s gays were barred from serving in the government (Adams, 1997). The 1960’s gays fought back into the stonewall riots and began the first steps in gay rights movement (Adams, 1997). In the 1970’s “homophobia” was coined for the first time and homosexuality was taken off the list of mental illnesses (Adams, 1997). In the 1980’s AIDS hit the scene and society was quick to blame gay men for because it was thought to have started with them (Adams, 1997). They also started to realize that gay teens were 2-3 times more likely to kill themselves proving they were indeed oppressed and suicidal (Adams, 1997). In the 1990’s in the most recent of capitalist events, right wing conservatives blame homosexuals for the breakdown of “traditional” family values (Carlin, 2007). They also started putting gay bans on the military and marriage (Adams, 1997). But in the 2000’s going forward several states began legalizing gay marriage (Carlin, 2007). Even though gays have been through a lot of oppression in last century they have made a lot of progression in recent years with the federal government legalizing gay marriage and gay rights in

B. Abstract. In this paper I will discuss modern issues surrounding the LGBTQ community in U.S. Politics. I will review the major historical LGBTQ political movements in regards to education, image, law, health, and protest. I will then discuss their effects on identity politics, the economy, citizenship, and nationalism. I will conclude with an overview and a discussion of the current state of LGBTQ issues in American politics.

I am proud to admit that I am part of the 8 to 10 percent of the US Population that identifies as a gay male. When it comes to addressing the many needs of the GLBTQ community, there are so many important current issues that I could write about, and it's difficult to pick just one. My population has been discriminated against, denied equal rights, healthcare and jobs, we have been bullied, jailed, killed, and have faced the negative stigma that society has created for being who we are. When I hear people that say being gay, lesbian, bisexual, or transgender is a choice I’m reminded of the discrimination that people go through and think why would anyone choose this lifestyle. I didn’t choose this lifestyle but was merely born this way as

The difficulties and inequities listed above contribute to the overall health and wellness of LGBTQ people. They experience additional stress due to discrimination and bullying in their schools and jobs which lead to a greater risk of depression and anxiety which leads to suicide and self-harm. LGBTQ teens face isolation and depression because they are navigating their sexuality without any support (Subhrajit).

Continuously deprived of acceptance, Americans from the LGBTQ community have fought and died in violent battles for this country throughout the entire history of the United States. Long before the terms gay and lesbian were even synonymous with sexual minorities, the designers of this country’s puritanical roots flaunted contempt for non-traditional individuals in the military through practice of sodomy laws. Emblematic of homosexuality today, sodomy was defined as basically any non-procreative sexual act with either a man or a woman. At best, suspected individuals were barred from enlisting, and at worst, these patriotic men were persecuted harshly with financial penalization or worse yet, mental/physical abuse dished out from their fellow

They are all central topics in the life of an LGB person and most of them have experienced one or another. Not only will a good and diverse characterisation of gay characters better the understanding of LGB people for the viewer, but also learning about certain topics they would not learn about if no one in their circle of acquaintances is part of the LGB community is important. Being a part of the community myself, I find these to be some of the most important factors of