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Stonewall Riots Research Paper

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At three am on June 28th, 1969, Brooklyn police did a routine raid on the Stonewall Inn in Greenwich Village, New York City. They expected the gay and transgender people inside to come quietly, but they did the opposite. This event forever changed the way the Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender and Queer (LGBTQ+) community fought for rights. The 1969 Stonewall riots prompted the LGBTQ+ community to explore the idea of gay defiance against society, made encounters between the straight and gay communities more prevalent, and opened up the floodgates for the exchange and discussion of ideas on sexuality in the United States. During the 1950s and 60s, society looked down on homosexuality. The general public opinion was that homosexuality was something to be ashamed of and threatening to wholesome family values. In a 1967 CBS News documentary called “The Homosexuals”, anchor Mike Wallace said, “In preparing this broadcast, CBS News commissioned a survey by the Opinion Research Corporation into public attitudes about homosexuality. We discovered that Americans consider homosexuality more harmful to society than adultery, abortion, or prostitution.” …show more content…

Castration, electroshock therapy, and hypnosis were popular medical treatments as “cures” for homosexuality. In an interview with a Stonewall riot veteran, Roy McCarthy, he said, “We were tired of gay people getting locked up in psychiatric hospitals and getting tortured! We had our own Auschwitzes and Dachaus! And we were just pissed off about all of that! And it had to end!” The widespread perception of homosexuality as a disease in the 1950s and 60s contributed largely to the all-consuming rage the gay community finally expressed to the New York City police that fateful

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