Remembering Stonewall
30 Jun 10 12:00 AM CDT
Remembering Stonewall
by Calvin Walds
NBJC Summer Intern
Center For Progressive Leadership 2010 New Leader Intern
An accepting and affirming environment is crucial in a society that does not always accept our differences. The Stonewall Inn, a gay nightclub, allowed its patrons to take off the masks
concealing their true selves and allowed a space for open expression of being LGBT. People of different races and social classes united at the Stonewall Inn in their LGBT identity. Having
this space did not come easy; however, the club was frequently met with homophobia by law enforcement agents with several police raids.
On June 28, 1969, the patrons chose to fight back, to fight back against homophobia, to fight for their rights as citizens and for their individuality. The Stonewall Riots, inspired by the Civil Rights Movement and the anti-war demonstrations, represent the LGBT community standing up in the face of oppression.
Forty-one years later, we continue this fight for an accepting and affirming environment that accepts our differences—working to pass ENDA, repeal Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell, and striving for marriage equality. As we keep up the pressure, many within our community remain in conditions that are eerily similar to those of that day in June. Many of the Stonewall’s patrons were homeless LGBT youth, homeless for a multitude of reasons, many tying back to their sexuality. According to a 2010 Center for American Progress (CAP) report entitled “On the Streets: The Federal Response to Gay and Transgender Homeless Youth,” 44 percent of LGBT homeless youth are Black and 26 percent are Hispanic. This is a troubling issue that must be woven into the larger scheme of LGBT issues. Once again, the LGBT community must unite to fight for an issue that supersedes that of race or class, which stand to separate us.
The Stonewall Riots, which set in motion the modern-day gay rights movement, signifies the LGBT community coming together for a common cause. As with that historic day 41 years ago in the Greenwich Village neighborhood New York City, we must unite to pass ENDA, repeal DADT, fight for marriage equality and our place in America. Onward and upward…
