The modern “gay liberation movement” officially began on June 27, 1969 when a bar called the Stonewall Inn in New York’s Greenwich Village was raided by police. Rather than passively accept the situation, some 200 gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender patrons fought back against the police and their nearly nightly raids of gay bars. Riots and rallies ensued and continued for three days straight. A year later, five thousand people marched in New York City to commemorate the Stonewall uprising and to send out a “call for action”. In 1994, at Gay Pride Day, a quarter million people marched.
For more on the Stonewall Riots, visit the Stonewall Veterans Site {http://www.stonewallvets.org/index.htm}
Early gay politics were rarely about achieving specific goals; gay rights legislation was unheard of until the mid-1970s in most American cities. The point was more to draw attention to the very existence of gay people. The tactic succeeded in increasing the visibility of homosexuality, despite disagreement from within the movement about the best approach to gain acceptance.
The 1973 decision by the American Psychological Association to delete homosexuality from its list of mental illnesses, after a bitter internal fight, effectively placed the mainstream of the medical profession on the side of gay rights advocates.
A number of groups formed after the Stonewall Riots to work for the repeal of laws prohibiting consensual homosexual conduct; for legislation barring discrimination against gays in housing and employment; and for greater acceptance of homosexuals among the rest of the population. By the early 1990’s, 26 states had repealed their anti-sodomy laws. Laws protecting homosexuals from discrimination also had been enacted, but largely at the local level; by 1995 only nine states had such laws.
Opposition to anti-discrimination laws, particularly from conservative religious groups, has often been strong, and opponents have often gained repeal of gay rights measures. In 1993 the Defense Department, at President Clinton's order, changed the ban on homosexuals in the military to a ban on homosexual activity, and beginning in 1995 homosexuals were no longer automatically refused government security clearances. This year, New Hampshire lifted its ban on gay adoptions. Many companies and universities are beginning to include sexual orientation in their anti-discrimination policies and to provide marriage benefits to same-sex couples. Worldwide, laws relating to homosexuality vary widely; only three nations (Denmark, Norway, and Sweden) permit homosexual marriages.
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