Stonewall 40
Did you think you could sneak by Sunday without some commentary from someone who is now on his second cocktail of the evening (Saturday night) and debating whether he should be writing at all? Tomorrow (Sunday) is a big day for gay America. Sunday, June 28 marks the 40th anniversary of the Stonewall Riots in New York City. This single event is considered to be the starting point for the gay rights movement in this country and it’s one that I can’t pass over without recognizing those who came before me. I’m going to be 35 this year which means that gay ‘liberation’ has been part of my life for all of my life. Certainly the act of rebellion towards violent mistreatment of gays and lesbians by authorities marked a turning point for this culture that I belong to. No more were gays going to be singled out, beaten, harassed, insulted, and berated in this country, most certainly not without a fight. The act of fighting back against the establishment (Police) at the Stonewall Inn on Christopher Street in NYC marked the beginning of what has become a long struggle for acceptance and equality for gays and lesbians. Here in 2009, that fight for equality is still enduring. It’s only a matter of time before full equality is achieved, however, none of it would have been possible were it not for that event and a few people who were just not going to take it any more.
I’ve done a fair amount of thinking about what the gay rights movement means to me over the years. When I came out in High School, it was about rebellion more than it was about acknowledging some inborn trait. It’s pretty safe to say that I knew I was gay early on in life but like lots of other kids my age, it was a game of denial and lies until maturity caught up with me in late high school and I decided I didn’t give a shit anymore. There was no way I was going to let on to anyone, even my folks, that I was different in “that way” from anyone else when I was 13 or 14. I was a pretty different kid to begin with but I didn’t need that issue compounding on to my already complicated life. By the time I was a Senior in High School though I had kept it quiet for long enough. Being a young adult, I wanted to be a part of something like every other kid does at that age. I had formed an accepting group of friends and it was not at all difficult to come out to any of them, some where surprised, but most were not. It was my turn to decide for myself how the rest of my life was going to go and I decided that my sexuality was not going to be some scary secret. I didn’t want to have to hide my relationships from the people I cared about, I didn’t want to be scared of who I was and I wasn’t going to lie to myself or anyone else and I decided at 17 to make that statement and haven’t looked back since. Imagine if you will growing up gay pre-stonewall. If you were out, you were lucky if you made it to your 35th birthday without significant scars. All that’s not to say that I don’t know when to keep my mouth shut. My judgment about people has not failed me yet.
So, what does all that have to do with anything? Everyone on the Earth has strong desires to be a part of something. You do, my friends do, and certainly I do as well. Every one of us can think of events from the past that have shaped us into the people we have become today. Young kids today hear about Stonewall and ask what the hell is that? For gay kids today their big event is Don’t ask Don’t tell from Clinton, or more recently Matthew Sheppard. Kids today don’t know about the impact HIV/AIDS had on the GLBT population in the 80’s and few recognize Reagen’s failure to act on that crisis sooner, they don’t know that gay relationships were illegal in all 50 states until just a few years ago! That’s ancient history to them. To an extent it is to me as well but those events shaped not just my views but the views of my parents and others close to me. I’ve lived thus far during an era of exponential growth in freedom for gay people. What has been achieved is substantial in this country in such a short period of time and it’s that short time frame that says to me people know what’s right and what’s wrong. People know that denying one group of people the freedom to be who they are is wrong. People know that when you hold one person down from being that one exceptional person, our whole country suffers. The process can be slow but in comparison with other movements by other minorities, gay rights have been swift and decisive. I’m proud to play a part in this movement. I’m proud to know that by simply acknowledging who I am, I can change people’s minds.
Lest we forget, history has a tendency to repeat itself…sometimes over, and over, and over again. GLBT equality is not the only equality fight left out there. Other people are oppressed and stigmatized every day for all kinds of things that can not be changed about themselves. We must all be conscious of the things that make us different but we all must recognize what makes us the same. I hate using quotes to make a point but I’ll leave you with this as we approach the 4th of July. It relates directly to my writing and to what we still have to accomplish:
We hold these truths to be self-evident: that all men are created equal; that they are endowed by their Creator with inalienable rights; that among these are life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness.- Thomas Jefferson
This country has a long way to go yet when it comes to equality for EVERYONE but we are all on the right track. Time, patience, and perseverance are the key elements towards that pursuit of happiness we all want in life.
