LGBT History

Gentle readers, today is Madonna’s 61st birthday. Below is a short story that first appeared on JMG on this day in 2006, a date which, as you’ll see, plays a role in the story. Ricky Loved Madonna Twenty years ago today, August 16th 1986, I was a few months into a new job with AMC Theatres, a position that I …

The Windy City Times reports: Students in Illinois public schools will learn about the contributions of lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender people in state and national history after approval today of the Inclusive Curriculum Law by Gov. Pritzker, according to Equality Illinois. Starting with the 2020-21 school year, the Inclusive Curriculum Law — House Bill 246 — will ensure the …

The Guardian reports: Alan Turing, the scientist known for helping crack the Enigma code during the second world war and pioneering the modern computer, has been chosen to appear on the new £50 note. The mathematician was selected from a list of almost 1,000 scientists in a decision that recognised both his role in fending off the threat of German …

ABC News reports: Around 5 million people attended WorldPride in New York City over the weekend, surpassing estimates of about 3 million, according to the mayor. New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio commended the police department for keeping the crowds safe as visitors from around the globe flooded the city’s streets over the weekend to celebrate LGBTQ rights. He …

The New York Daily News reports: Gov. Andrew Cuomo on Sunday signed a law banning the so-called “gay panic” defense in New York State, saying it “ends the justification of homophobia.” Cuomo scribbled his John Hancock on Bill A2707 in the thick of the Pride march in Manhattan as members from the LGBTQ cheered alongside him. “New York has always …

The New York Times reports: Visitors came from around the block and around the world, streaming through the streets surrounding the Stonewall Inn. Storefronts flew rainbow flags and pumped pulsing pop music onto the sidewalks, where vendors hawked Pride merchandise. Police officers sought refuge from the sweltering sun in doorways, and firefighters rested on their hulking red trucks. The crowd …

Just in via email from the Democratic National Committee: “Today, we celebrate the birth of the modern LGBTQ rights movement. We honor the courage and diversity of the activists at Stonewall. We remember heroes like Sylvia Rivera and Marsha P. Johnson – two trans women of color – whose bravery changed our country for the better. And we recognize all …

Just in via email from the Buttigieg campaign: Fifty years ago, early on a Saturday morning, police came through the door of the Stonewall Inn. That raid gave rise to a resistance, which in turn helped launch the arrival of LGBTQ consciousness in America as we know it. My candidacy is possible today only because of the hard work and …

Last night I attended the opening ceremonies for WorldPride/Stonewall 50 at Brooklyn’s Barclays Center where NYC Pride dazzled the packed arena with a slick production that was by turns moving, inspiring, and just plain fabulous.  Variety reports: Whoopi Goldberg was the host of the evening, delivering an uplifting speech that set up the evening’s celebratory atmosphere while marking the 50th …

It was 50 years ago this week that the queer community of New York City finally said “Enough!” As I’ve done for the last few years on this day, I’m reposting the story that the New York Daily News ran one week after the Stonewall Riots. Note how the story drips with condescension and ridicule. We’ve come a long, long …

The Hill reports: The American Psychoanalytic Association apologized on Friday for previously labeling homosexuality a mental illness. “It is long past time to recognize and apologize for our role in the discrimination and trauma caused by our profession,” Lee Jaffe, the group’s president, said in a statement. “We all know that hearing the words ‘we are sorry’ is important to …

In the next day or so I’ll have a much more extensive post about the myriad events offered up by NYC Pride and WorldPride, some of which are long sold out, but in the meantime I’ve just been told that some tickets are still available for the opening ceremony, which has quite the fantastic lineup: NYC Pride is proud to …

Gentle readers, on today’s third anniversary of the Pulse massacre, I’m rerunning my account of that day. The story below originally ran on Pride Life’s website on July 12th 2016 and makes its first appearance on JMG today. Their Phones Kept Ringing One month ago today, Sunday June 12th, around 8AM I began my day, as usual, by examining my …

CNN reports: In the days ahead of the third anniversary of the mass shooting at Pulse nightclub in Orlando, Florida lawmakers have proposed plans to designate the nightclub a national memorial. U.S. Reps. Darren Soto and Stephanie Murphy, both from Central Florida, announced their plan to declare Pulse a federal landmark at a service in front of the temporary memorial …

Gentle readers, I’m rerunning my annual Pride rant for the fifteenth year. I wrote this post in 2005 a couple of days after attending Pride in NYC. In the following years I’ve reposted it in advance of NYC Pride in the hope of encouraging you to attend your local events. Have a wonderful Pride Month. Love each other. Watching The …

The New York Times reports: New York’s police commissioner, James P. O’Neill, apologized on Thursday on behalf of the Police Department for officers’ actions during the Stonewall riot, a seminal 1969 clash outside a Greenwich Village club that is widely regarded as a turning point for the modern gay rights movement. “I think it would be irresponsible to go through …

New York City’s WINS radio reports: It’s been fifty years since police officers raided the Stonewall Inn — the legendary Christopher Street gay bar — and Corey Johnson thinks it’s about time that the NYPD apologize to the LGBTQ community for the raid, which gave birth to the modern-day LGBTQ rights movement. “The NYPD in the past has apologized for …

Via press release from Chicago Review Press: The bright, exuberant colors on the rainbow flag have long been a symbol of pride and unity for the LGBTQ+ community. From the beginning of its creation, artist Gilbert Baker simply wanted to capture the joyful liberation of sexual identity. Little did he know, the flag would become an internationally recognized symbol that …

From Google’s corporate blog: The LGBT Community Center of New York City, with support from Google.org, has worked to preserve LGBTQ+ history for future generations by extending the Stonewall National Monument from its physical location in New York City to a digital experience that can be accessed by everyone, everywhere. Stonewall Forever is the result of the LGBT Community Center’s …

The New York Times reports: Marsha P. Johnson [screenshot above] and Sylvia Rivera, pioneering transgender activists who were at the vanguard of the gay rights movement, will be immortalized in a monument that may be placed down the street from the Stonewall Inn, the city said on Wednesday. Ms. Johnson and Ms. Rivera were both drag performers and vibrant characters …