Historical Moments in the Fight for LGBTQ Rights

            In Honor of the Pride Month

- Many of us are considering how to address the problems that the LGBTQ community is currently facing as we observe Pride Month across the nation this year. While continuing to advance is crucial, it's also essential to take stock of our progress by looking back. Take a look at some of the most significant events in our nation's past that have significantly advanced the LGBTQ rights movement before you go to the next Pride parade. The background and symbolism of LGBTQ flags can also be researched.

1924: The first gay rights group is established

In Chicago, Henry Gerber, a World War 1 veteran, established the society for Human Rights. The organization was the first gay rights organization in America, and its newsletter, ''Friendship and Freedom,'' was the first gay rights publication in the United States. 

January 1958: The Supreme Court rules in favor of gay rights.

The U.S. Supreme Court took the case after the U.S. Post Office refused to deliver ONE: The Homosexual Magazine, the country's first widely disseminated pro-gay publication, and the court for the first time decided in favor of homosexual rights, making it a significant landmark case in LGBTQ history.

April 21, 1966: The Mattachine Society organizes a gay right ''SIP-IN.''

One of the nation's first gay rights groups, the Mattachine Society, organized a "Sip-In" where activists went into a bar in New York City, came out as gay, ordered drinks, and waited to be served. At the time, the majority of bars did not serve gay people.

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June 28, 1969: The Stonewall riots spark the beginning of the LGBTQ movement.

The Stonewall Inn, a gay bar in New York City, was raided by police early on June 28, 1969, but the patrons and their allies stood their ground. The incident devolved into a violent demonstration, sparking riots that lasted for several days. Most people agree that the "Stonewall riots" marked the beginning of the LGBTQ civil rights struggle in the US.

 

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1973: Homosexuality is no longer declared a mental illness.

After years of studies, analysis, and changing cultural attitudes, the American Psychiatric Association’s board of directors removed homosexuality from the official list of mental illnesses, known as the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, a move that was upheld with a vote by the association’s membership.

1987: Barney Frank becomes second openly gay member of congress.

Rep. Barney Frank (D-Mass.) voluntarily came out as homosexual after serving on Capitol Hill for six years, making him only the second openly gay congressman in history and the first to do so.

April 2000: Vermont takes a huge step toward same sex marriage legalization.

For the first time in the nation, Vermont allowed same-sex couples to form civil unions, which are legally recognized relationships that confer the same rights and advantages as legally recognized marriages.

October 2009: The Mattew Shepard & James Byrd Jr, Hate Crimes Prevention Act becomes a law.

The Matthew Shepard and James Byrd, Jr. Hate Crimes Prevention Act was ratified by President Obama. The law is called after two men who were killed in hate crimes: James Byrd Jr., a black man, and Matthew Shepard, a gay man, both of whom were victims of hate crimes. The newly enacted legislation broadened the definition of a hate crime to include crimes motivated by real or fictitious gender, sexual orientation, gender identity, or disability.

  

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September,2011: ''Don't Ask, Don't Tell' is over.

The "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" law, which prohibited openly gay Americans from enlisting in the armed services, was formally repealed by President Obama.

Jube,2013: Scotus strikes down the Defense of Marriage Act [DOMA].

The Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA), which became a law in 1996, declared that marriages between gay or lesbian couples were not recognized by the federal government, meaning those couples could not receive legal benefits — like Social Security and health insurance — that straight married couples could. However, the Supreme Court declared DOMA unconstitutional in 2013, allowing same-sex couples who were married within their own states to profit from those federal benefits.

January,2015: President Obama acknowledges the LGBTQ community in the state of the Union address. 

When President Obama stated that as Americans, we "respect human dignity" and condemn the persecution of minority groups, he used the terms "lesbian," "bisexual," and "transgender" for the first time in American history.

April,2015: Obama calls for end to conversation therapy.

President Obama publicly urged an end to the risky therapy intended to alter people's sexual orientation or gender identities following the tragic suicide of a transgender adolescent who had undergone Christian conversion therapy.

June,2015: Sexual orientation is added to the military's anti-discrimination policy.

Though “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” was repealed in 2011, sexual orientation was still not a protected class (unlike race, religion, sex, age, and national origin) under the Military Equal Opportunity Policy — until June of 2015, when the U.S. Defense Secretary, Ashton Carter, announced that it would officially be added to the anti-discrimination policy.

June 26,2015: Love Wins

According to the Supreme Court's ultimate and definitive ruling, same-sex unions are now legally permitted in every state, irrespective of a person's gender or sexual orientation.