The Evolution of Gay Rights:
Paper instructions:
Paper is to be written in a chapter format. Wanting a little bit of character in the paper and some dialogue but still wanting it to sound educational. Paper is focusing on the nonviolent aspects of how gay rights have progressed over the years. Do not focus on violent aspects but rather nonvioelent aspects. Add statistics and use public figures as examples. Also, discuss how media is changing the way they portray lbgt.
Examples to Use in My Chapter:
• 1951-The Mattachine Society, the first national gay rights organization, is formed by Harry Hay, considered by many to be the founder of the gay rights movement.
• 1958- Joe Cino, an Italian-American theater producer, opens Caffe Cino. Caffe Cino is credited with starting the Off-Off-Broadway theater movement. Six years after Caffe Cino opens, it hosts the first gay plays, The
Madness of Lady Bright, by Lanford Wilson, and The Haunted Host, by Robert Patrick.
• 1962- Illinois becomes the first state in the U.S. to decriminalize homosexual acts between consenting adults in private.
• 1973-The American Psychiatric Association removes homosexuality from its official list of mental disorders. Harvey Milk runs for city supervisor in San Francisco. He runs on a socially liberal platform and opposes government involvement in personal sexual matters. Milk comes in 10th out of 32 candidates, earning 16,900 votes, winning the Castro District and other liberal neighborhoods. He receives a lot of media attention for his passionate speeches, brave political stance, and media skills.
• 1978- On January 8, Harvey Milk makes national news when he is sworn in as a member of the San Francisco Board of Supervisors. Running against 16 other candidates, he wins the election by 30 percent. Milk begins his term by sponsoring a civil rights bill that outlaws sexual orientation discrimination. Only one supervisor votes against it and Mayor Moscone signs it into law.
• John Briggs drops out of the California governor’s race, but receives support for Proposition 6, also known as the Briggs Initiative, a proposal to fire any teacher or school employee who publicly supports gay rights. Harvey Milk campaigns against the bill and attends every event hosted by Briggs. In the summer, attendance greatly increases at Gay Pride marches in San Francisco and Los Angeles, partly in response to Briggs. President Jimmy Carter, former Governor Ronald Reagan, and Governor Jerry Brown speak out against the proposition. On November 7, voters reject the proposition by more than a million votes.
• On November 27, Harvey Milk and Mayor George Moscone are assassinated by Dan White, another San Francisco city supervisor, who had recently resigned and wanted his job back, but was being passed over because he wasn’t the best fit for the liberal leaning Board of Supervisors and the ethnic diversity in White’s district. San Francisco pays tribute to Harvey Milk by naming several locations after him, included Harvey Milk Plaza at the intersection of Market and Castro streets. The San Francisco Gay Democratic Club changes its name to the Harvey Milk Memorial Gay Democratic Club.
• 1979-About 75,000 people participated in the National March on Washington for Lesbian and Gay Rights in Washington, D.C., in October. It was the largest political gathering in support of LGBT rights to date
• 1993- The “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” policy is instituted for the U.S. military, permitting gays to serve in the military but banning homosexual activity. President Clinton’s original intention to revoke the prohibition against gays in the military was met with stiff opposition; this compromise, which has led to the discharge of thousands of men and women in the armed forces, was the result
• April 29, Jason Collins of the NBA’s Washington Wizards announces in an essay in Sports Illustrated that he is gay. “I’m a 34-year-old N.B.A. center. I’m black and I’m gay,” he writes. “I’ve reached that enviable state in life in which I can do pretty much what I want. And what I want is to continue to play basketball. I still love the game, and I still have something to offer. My coaches and teammates recognize that. At the same time, I want to be genuine and authentic and truthful.” Collins is the first active athlete in the NBA, NFL, NHL, or MLB to make the announcement. Because lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender people look just like anyone else, the media often adds images to make the gay community as visible as a difference in skin color. In many forms of popular entertainment, gay men are portrayed as overly promiscuous, flashy and incredibly bold. Gay and lesbian families are commonly misunderstood because society equates sexual orientation with the ability to reproduce. Gay and lesbian, even in the movies, are usually not the main characters. They most of the time fall into the stereotyped supporting characters or portrayed as a victim or villain.[1] There is currently a widespread view that reference to gay people should be omitted from child-related entertainment. When such references do occur they almost invariably generate controversy. In 1997, when American comedian Ellen DeGeneres came out of the closet on her popular sitcom, many sponsors, such as the Wendy’s fast food chain, pulled their advertising.[citation needed].
Media has hurt the LGBT community but also helped them. Milestones to the gay community such as the book “Vice Versa” and Ellen DeGeneres coming out has helped other LGBT come out and feel better about being themselves.[2] Despite the stereotypical depictions of gay people, the media has at times promoted acceptance of them with television shows such as Will and Grace and Queer Eye. This increased publicity reflects the coming-out movement of the LGBT community. As more celebrities come out, more gay-friendly shows develop, such as the 2004 show The L Word. With the popularity of gay television shows, music artists and gay fashion, Western culture has had to open its eyes to the gay community.This new acceptance from the media can partially be explained by the contact hypothesis, aka inter group contact theory. With more shows promoting the acceptance of gays, people are able to view a more correct depiction of the LGBT community.[3] In the United States, gay people are frequently used as a symbol of social decadence by celebrity evangelists and by organizations such as Focus on the Family.In Québec, RG Magazine was a major defender of LGBT causes for some 30 years
• Among other points, Pope Francis: Replied when asked about the Vatican’s alleged “gay lobby” that while a lobby might be an issue, he doesn’t have any problem with the inclination to homosexuality itself: “Who am I to judge them if they’re seeking the Lord in good faith?” he said.
• Search for celebrities such as Matt Bomer, Ellen, Ricky Martin, Clay Aiken, Lance Bass,
• About 9 million: The number of Americans who are gay, lesbian, bisexual or transgender, according to a 2011 study by a scholar at the UCLA School of Law’s Williams Institute
• 49: The percentage of Americans who now favor allowing gays and lesbians to marry legally, according to a Pew Research Center poll conducted in mid-March. Forty-four percent are opposed.