Gay and lesbian rights

Summary

During the 1960s, there emerged within the United States a revolutionary movement that would change the way people thought about homosexuality. Driven by such powerful events as the Stonewall riots and Frank Kameny’s Washington, D.C. picket, and fronted by such influential leaders as Reed Erickson, Phillis Lyon and Del Martin, the gay/lesbian/bisexual/transgender movement sought to redefine social equality and pushed for equal treatment for homosexuals. Also emphasized within the G/L/B/T movement was an openness foreign to the timid “homophile” movement popular among gays, lesbians, bisexuals and transgender people during the 50s. Although no single person or group can accurately be said to have “lead” the massive push for change that was the G/L/B/T movement, most groups and organizations at the forefront of the movement can be said to have shared a similar set of goals and aspirations: equality, and the freedom to be openly gay.

Important People

Although the G/L/B/T movement owes many victories to the men and women – young, old, and middle-aged, who stood behind organizations, marches and one another during a time in which homosexuality was largely scorned by both the public and the law, a handful of these bold crusaders stands out as the engines that kicked the movement into life, propelling it into to a higher level of intensity and recognition with their drive to secure change.