Gay Rights

1440 Words3 Pages
bulb-icon

Recommended: History of gay marriage essay

Can you imagine losing one’s rights just for being one’s self? The Gay Rights movement is slowly gaining the rights back for gay people. This movement started in the 1960’s and it is still going on today. The main leader of the Gay Rights movement is Harvey Milk; the main followers are the people of the Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender community, also known as the LGBT community. Milk’s main purpose to do the speech was to explain how similar gay people are to everyone else and to get the rights back that were taken away from them. There are even a lot of people who are not a part of the LGBT community that are also followers of Harvey Milk and support gay rights. The main purpose for this movement is to give gay people the same rights as straight people. The literary piece, “The Hope Speech”, by Harvey Milk contains the themes: A gay person was elected, everyone needs hope, and that gay people have come a long way. The speech somewhat explains how many gay people are stereotyped. The gay rights movement is manifested in “The Hope Speech” by Harvey Milk.
The theme of Harvey Milk’s speech was for gay people to regain the same rights as straight people, explain how gay people are like straight people, and to help better explain who Harvey Milk is. Harvey Milk was one of the first openly gay people to run for local government and be elected mayor. Gay people are judged with a lot of stereotypes and often get bullied. Harvey Milk would be happy with how far gay people have gotten in their lives and regaining their rights in recent years. “In 1977 we saw a gay person elected in San Francisco” (Milk).
This quote shows how Harvey Milk, a gay man, was elected to be part of local government. It is also important because it w...

... middle of paper ...

...or being who they are or believing in something and they word will be a better place for everyone.

Works Cited

Crary, David. "Despite Pressure, Gay, Bisexual Blood Donor Band Continues."
The Associated Press (New York) 16 Sept. 2013. Associated Press: n. pag. eLibrary. Web. 1 Oct. 2013.
Descant, Skip. "More Mountains To Climb." Desert Sun (Palm Springs), 30 June
2013, sec. A: 1. eLibrary. Web. 24 Sept. 2013.
Graff, J. E. "Martial Blitz." American Prospect 1 Mar. 2006: 41. eLibrary. Web.
23 Sept. 2013.
Milk, Harvey. "The Hope Speech." California Faith For Equality.
California Faith For Equality, n.d. Web. 24 Sept. 2013.
Oliver, Marilyn. Gay and Lesbian Rights: A Struggle. Spring Field, NJ: Library of Congress, 1998. Print.
Schubert, Frank and Jeff Flint. "Passing Prop 8." Politics 2013: 44. elibrary. Web. 4 Sept. 2013.

Show More
Related

  • Pat O Hara Case Study

    953 Words  | 2 Pages

    In addition to lobbying politicians, Pat wanted to change local attitudes so, taking advantage of her popularity as a guest speaker at Rotary, Lions, Toastmasters and other local groups, she made gay equality her subject at every meeting she spoke at, and convinced many locals previously unconcerned by the matter, of the injustices faced by the gay and lesbian communities. “I was so angry that gays were treated differently. We are all equal and should be treated the same. It is unfair and unjust to be judged as a person on your sexuality” she said.

    Read More

  • The Antigay Movement In Vicki L. Eaklor's Queer America

    1579 Words  | 4 Pages

    The Times of Harvey Milk suggests that the experiences of lesbians, gay men, bisexuals, and transgender people in the 1980s and 1990s reflect on the dangers of visibility. While the election of the first openly gay politician, Harvey Milk, was a first, representing change in it’s own, the murder of Harvey Milk spoke even louder, specifically the short amount of time his murderer, Dan White, was sentenced. The film suggests that while being openly gay at the time, while accepted by some, remained and still remains a danger. Public leaders within the movement experienced violence, discrimination, and in Harvey Milk’s case murder. Even so, it is shown that with every injustice the community grows bigger and stronger, never losing the support of its community and allies. This is shown in the film by the silent, candlelight parade of 45,000 people on the night of the murder, followed by an angry, violent, riot following the sentencing of his murderer. Though Milk was murdered, a decade before he would have never been elected, he wouldn’t have had support, this was a pivotal point in the growth of the movement.

    Read More

  • The Mayor Of Castro Street Sparknotes

    1018 Words  | 3 Pages

    ““Anger had no place among homosexuals of those years, only fear. Not only fear of the police but fear of himself”(Shilts, 4). Being gay was such a bad thing back then that even gay people feared themselves. I think a lot of people ask the question “well how come no one ever just spoke up and fought back?” In reality, it’s not that simple. People of the minority carried immense fear and felt such a burden about it because there’s nothing they can do it “fix” it. I also think it’s important to remember that Harvey always kind of knew he was going to be killed because of what he believed in. “This is Harvey Milk… This is to be played only after the event of my death by assassination… I fully realize that a person who stands for what I stand for, an activist, a gay activist, becomes the target or potential target for a person who is insecure, terrified, afraid or very disturbed with themselves”(275). This is just a pattern in history. You can look at almost any person who fought for justice in a social movement and a lot of them end up dead. If not dead, almost all have had multiple death threats thrown their way. Harvey knew this fact and he knew that it was a possibility. It goes to show how scary standing up for what you believe in is and why it’s not as easy just to fight

    Read More

  • Historical Impact of The Stonewall Riots in Stonewall

    1045 Words  | 3 Pages

    Historian David Carter, provides an intriguing in-depth look into the historical impact of the Stonewall Riots in Stonewall: The Riots that Sparked the Gay Revolution. This engaging book adds to the genre of sexual orientation discrimination. Carter extensively analyzes the various factors that played a role in igniting the Stonewall riots and the historical impact that the riots had on the Gay Revolution and movement for gay equality. Through the use of interviews, newspapers, and maps, Carter argues that the riots were a product of many geographical, social, political, and cultural factors. Carter further argues that the riots ultimately led to the forming of the Gay Revolution and caused sexual orientation to be a protected category in the growing movement for civil rights. Carter’s book provides a well-structured argument, supported mainly by primary evidence, into the different factors that contributed to the riots as well as a detailed account of the events that transpired during the riots and the political attitudes towards homosexuality in America during this time.

    Read More

  • Political Maneuvering and the Civil Rights Act of 1964

    2765 Words  | 6 Pages

    Skepticism about government is, in many respects, part of the DNA of Americans. This skepticism is not without reason – the actions of American politicians in the 1960s and 70s caused much of America to wonder about the motives of elected officials. However, such skepticism is rarely brought up when discussing the government’s participation in denouncing oppression against the African-American community. Most assume the government enforced equal opportunity for minorities out of compassion and humanity. However, much like the other major actions of the government during that era, the passage of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, a groundbreaking law condemning segregation, was not devoid of personal motives. The Black community was not oblivious to this fact, and voiced its outrage through different mediums. Within the literary community, James Baldwin stands out as an author who especially attacked the government, claiming all the benefits his community was now receiving was not the result of compassion, but rather was the result of politics as usual.

    Read More

  • Harvey Milk Day Essay

    753 Words  | 2 Pages

    As his second term comes to a close, your president is milking his gay agenda for all it’s worth. Secretary of the Navy Ray Mabus announced the U.S. Navy will bestow its highest honor by naming a warship for former gay rights activist and the first openly gay to be elected to public office as a San Francisco city commissioner, Harvey Milk.

    Read More

  • The New Civil Rights By Kenji Yoshino

    1528 Words  | 4 Pages

    All human beings are born with genes that are unique to them and make us the individuals we become. The right to exist as an individual in society achieving the best possible potential of one’s existence irrespective of any bias is expected by most humans. In the essay, ‘The new Civil Rights’ Kenji Yoshino discusses how the experience of discovering and revealing his sexual preference as a gay individual has led to him proposing a new civil rights by exploring various paradigms of the rights of a human being to exist in today’s diverse society. In exploring the vast demands of rights ranging from political or basic human rights we have differentiated ourselves into various groups with a common thread weaving through all the demands which

    Read More

  • The Stonewall Riots

    1224 Words  | 3 Pages

    In the past decades, the struggle for gay rights in the Unites States has taken many forms. Previously, homosexuality was viewed as immoral. Many people also viewed it as pathologic because the American Psychiatric Association classified it as a psychiatric disorder. As a result, many people remained in ‘the closet’ because they were afraid of losing their jobs or being discriminated against in the society. According to David Allyn, though most gays could pass in the heterosexual world, they tended to live in fear and lies because they could not look towards their families for support. At the same time, openly gay establishments were often shut down to keep openly gay people under close scrutiny (Allyn 146). But since the 1960s, people have dedicated themselves in fighting for

    Read More

  • Gay Rights in Huey Newton´s 1970 Speech

    1305 Words  | 3 Pages

    “Jesus never said a word about homosexuality. In all of his teachings about multiple things--he never said that gay people should be condemned. I personally think it is very fine for gay people to be married in civil ceremonies” (Carter). Jimmy Carter took a religious route to support the Gay Rights Movement. The Gay Rights Movement started in the 1950s and is still a heated topic that is debated over. The Gay Rights Movement is believed to be started by the Stonewall riots. The Gay Rights Movement had no real leaders and its followers were homosexuals and people who sought for oppression towards gays to end. The purpose of the Gay Rights Movement is to end discrimination towards the homosexual community. “The Women’s Liberation and Gay Liberation Movements” is a speech written and spoken by Huey Newton, cofounder of the Black Panther Party. The speech was given on August 15, 1970 and the theme of the speech is for people to fight for their own liberation. In Huey Newton’s “The Women’s Liberation and Gay Liberation Movements” speech, he motivates his intended audience during the Gay Rights Movement by using the rhetorical strategies pathos and punctuation.

    Read More

  • The Stonewall Riots Analysis

    605 Words  | 2 Pages

    Mattachine, an activist group in New York, called for a meeting July 16 to organize around gay liberation. Dick Leitsch, an old time leader, tried to lead the meeting. “ Acceptance of gays and lesbians would take time,” he explained, but one young man shouted, “we don't want acceptance, we have got to radi...

    Read More

  • The Death Of Harvey Milk

    923 Words  | 2 Pages

    Harvey Milk used his influence to give a voice to those who were quiet and when he was killed, his voice was not just taken from him, but many others who didn’t have a platform. He finally won a seat in government after losing two elections. Milk’s diligence gave the LGBT community

    Read More

  • Harvey Milk

    1065 Words  | 3 Pages

    The background of homosexuality in the 1940’s and 50’s was harsh, but people started to be opened toward the rights. There were criticisms toward homosexuality in the early days of Milk. Gay men carried the labels of mentally ill or psychopathic. Often times, gay men committed suicide from harsh judgement and criticism that always followed them. Even though population of homosexuality grew and had jobs, they were harassed and beaten by the police. There were a lot of disapproval and hostility of homosexuality. Anita Bryant, a singer, made a campaign to oppose the rights of homosexuals. Christian forces and activists withdrew gay-right legislation which lead to Proposition 6. The harshness from background of homosexuality back in the 1940’s and 50’s took the freedom away from the homosexuals. After the harshness, there came a little bit of hope for the homosexuals in San Francisco. Castro, a city in San Francisco, became the center of gay neighborhood. In 1964, gay men formed Society of Individual Right (SIR), and 1,200 members joined. Homosexuals started having good views when Sipple who was gay saved the president from a gunshot. Finally in 1972, Board of Supervisor banned the discrimination law for homosexuals. Even though in 1940...

    Read More

  • The Causes Of The Stonewall Riots

    1014 Words  | 3 Pages

    The Stonewall Riots marked the start of the gay rights movement, and inspired members of the gay community to fight for their rights instead of being condemned for their sexuality. Even today, gay people in the US use the incident at Stonewall to educate younger members of the gay community. "The younger generation should know about Stonewall so that they will realize it is possible to make change. It is possible to overcome entrenched, institutionalized prejudice, discrimination, and bigotry. And that they can live full equal lives." (Frank Kameny, aarp.org) This is the message that many members of the gay community continue to spread after the incident at the Stonewall Inn.

    Read More

  • Civil Rights: Gay and Lesbian Rights

    1395 Words  | 3 Pages

    Famous children’s author Dr. Seuss once said, “Be who you are and say what you feel, because those who mind don’t matter and those who matter don’t mind". Gay rights, at the moment, are one of the most publicized and well known controversial subjects of this decade. The sides clearly drawn one fighting for rights as simple as being married the other stating that it defames their religion and goes against the definition of marriage, being between a man and a woman. The individuals who are fighting for their civil rights are fallowing the same path that African Americans and women have taken, but the change has started and in over 13 states gays have been given their basic rights and more state are joining in the fight both for and against the topic.

    Read More

  • What Was The Purpose Of I Have A Dream Speech

    745 Words  | 2 Pages

    The purpose of the speech was to address the issues of segregation and racism as a whole. King speaks about the issues of racism and segregation in America during the 1960’s. He encourages the use of non-violent protests and to fight for equality to help America solve the issue. King begins his speech by referencing important historical documents such as the Constitution of the United States and the Emancipation Proclamation. This is emphasized when he states, ”Five score years ago, a great American, in whose symbolic shadow we stand today, signed the Emancipation Proclamation.

    Read More

More about Gay Rights

Open Document