Early LGBTQ+ History

• LGBTQ+ History
• 6th Grade

Early LGBTQ+ History

What does "prejudice" mean?

1. to dislike someone because they are a bully.
2. to dislike/treat someone different because they don't like the same food as you.
3. to dislike/treat someone different because of their identity.
4. to dislike someone that you had an argument with.

What does "discrimination" mean?

1. to dislike someone because of their identity.
2. to take harmful actions against someone because of their identity.
3. to categorize/separate someone because of their identity.
4. to think negatively about someone who doesn't like SpaghettiO's

Have you ever felt like someone was being prejudice/discriminatory towards you? How did that make you feel?

1920's--"The Roaring Twenties"

• End of WW1 in 1918; rise of the economy.
• Age of Renaissance  (Harlem, Jazz-Age, rebirth, prosperity).
• Fight for binary, cisgender equality. Women gain the right to vote on August 18th, 1920; 19th Amendment.

1924

“The Society for Human Rights” was founded by Henry Gerber. It is the first and oldest gay rights movement organization, though very short-lived due to most members being arrested.

Shark features
One defining feature is how they feed. They either have:

• Teeth, or
• Filter feed.

Most shark species have teeth, but theirs are embedded into their gums, rather than bone like ours. While we have one row of teeth they have several.  

A shark can lose a tooth every 8 - 10 days. As they lose a tooth a new one moves up from the rows behind.  

Filter feeds, whale sharks, basking sharks and the megamouth shark, feed as they swim. They open their mouths filter plankton and zooplankton from the water.

1930's

• 1929--U.S. stock market crashes; beginning of The Great Depression (economy crashed after the economic expansion in the 20's).
• No political gay rights progression occurred, although LGBTQ+ communities still gathered in gay bars and privately. 
• Adolf Hitler began rising to power in Germany in 1933.
• 1939--WW2 begins.

World War 2

1939-1945: World War 2

• Common misconception that the Holocaust only  focused on the persecution of Jewish people.  
• People with disabilities were some of the first victims (~545,000), followed by Jews, Roma's and Sinti's ("Gypsies"), and gay people; over 11 million documented deaths (6 million Jews, 5 million non-Jews).
• What did the war look like for LGBTQ+ people in the U.S.?

Black, queer Americans "...received 22% of all blue discharges, more than double their proportional share..." 

What similarities or differences do you see between LGBTQ+ prejudice/discrimination before and during World War II, and today?

Discussion: What is the difference between a primary source and a secondary source?

Primary Source: "original records created by firsthand witnesses of the event;" documents/objects created by someone during that time period.

Secondary Source: an original interpretation/creation about a certain period of time; usually inspired by a primary source.

Examples of Primary Sources

Examples of Secondary Sources

transcription.si.edu

Christine Jorgensen

• "Ex-GI Becomes Blonde Beauty," "From GI Joe to GI Jane."
• After serving in WW2, Dr. Christian Hamburger in Denmark performed psychiatric evaluations while facilitating HRT and the removal of her male genitalia for free. 
• Returned to America as "Christine Jorgensen," in honor of Dr. Christian Hamburger. First American to receive fame from trans-identity.

"Headlines emphasized her GI background and embraced her as an American beauty by describing her long legs, blonde hair, and high fashion clothes. Jorgensen’s patriotism as a WWII veteran and beautiful feminine attributes embodied American values and structure, which captivated the public and press."

(https://www.nationalww2museum.org/war/articles/christine-jorgensen) 

1950's--Civil Rights Movement

• Time of economic expansion and general consensus on American identity (individualism, private property, and equality). All that said, we did not systematically provide that. 
• Segregation. 
• 1953: "Termination Policy."

What did the Civil Rights Movement look like for LGBTQ+ people?

• 1950: Mattachine Society founded by Harry Hay (and others). First/earliest Gay Rights organization.
• 1952: The American Psychiatric Association (APA) declares homosexuality as a “treatable sociopathic personality disturbance.”
• 1953: Executive Order 10450 signed by President Eisenhower; "Employment of Homosexuals and Other Perverts in Government." Also known as "The Lavender Scare;" pushed the narrative that LGBTQ+ people were a "threat to national security." Stays in effect for 40 years.

1955: Daughters of Bilitis

• First Lesbian Rights group formed in U.S.; stationed in San Francisco.
•  Founded by working women of color: Rose Bamberger and Rosemary Sliepen. Phyllis Lyon and Del Martin were also among the founding members. 
• Began as a private social club in the couples' homes since gay/lesbian bars were regularly raided.
• Soon expanded to individual chapters organized throughout the nation. 
• 1956: Began publishing The Ladder--the first nationally distributed magazine in the U.S.

During the Civil Rights Movement, what similarities/differences are there between the way Black people were treated versus LGBTQ+ people?

Why do you think the issue of segregation took precedent over LGBTQ+ rights during this time period?

1960's--Cultural Liberation

• Seemingly a time of turmoil, but also radical change. 
• 1962: Illinois becomes first U.S. state to decriminalize homosexuality.
• July 4th, 1965: Picketers gather at Independence Hall in Philadelphia to protest the lack of civil liberties faced by the LGBTQ+ community.

"Remembering a 1966 'Sip-In' for Gay Rights"

"Remembering a 1966 'Sip-In' for Gay Rights"

Transcript

1966: Compton Cafeteria Riot in San Francisco

"...first instance of organized queer resistance to harassment by U.S. authorities..."

• Following Christine Jorgensen's fame, the idea of  gender transitioning became legitimized. Trans individuals began to unapologetically put themselves in the public eye. This was met with social/police harassment and brutality, specifically towards transwomen of color. 
• Management of the Compton Cafeteria called police on a group of transwomen, deeming them "disorderly." After being physically harmed by an officer, a transwoman threw coffee at his face, and the riot ensued.
• Led to the formation of the first peer-run support and advocacy groups for trans people: National Transsexual Counseling Unit (NTCU).

June 28th, 1969--Stonewall Inn Riots: The Birth of the Modern Day Gay Rights Movement

The Story of Stonewall

1970's 

• June 28th, 1970: Christopher Street Liberation Day Parade; also known as the first Gay Pride Parade.