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Gay rights movements in the us
Gay rights movements in the us
Gay rights movements in the us
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Pop culture is nothing new to the world of genres; the artists write songs that contain their values, beliefs, personal stories and ideas of society. Pop songs create their own genre by portraying their styles, musical patterns and techniques in addition to their lyrics. They tend to have similar structural patterns in which the lyrics are arranged into intro-verse-chorus-verse-bridge-chorus. When using the word genre, one most familiarly would relate this to a book, song or movie associated within a specific category; it is commonplace to know that all books in the non-fiction genre will be have similar formal features such as incorporating facts and statistics. However, there is another layer to this, according to Dirk, “The definition of …show more content…
In the past, it was commonplace to mask gay lifestyles and culture; members of this community were condemned to a life of suppression. It is apparent that an assimilation of tolerance of homosexual culture and gay rights has emerged; yet the society has not entirely complied with all elements of this relatively new culture, hence the controversy surrounding it. A contribution to this new found tolerance has derived from the trending popularity of gay lifestyle in pop culture; some artists are emerging as homosexual, while others are expressing their values aligned with this movement. Because of this homosexual movement, society as a whole is struggling with the controversy with personal morals/ religion vs. civil right and equality. The genre of the pop songs itself takes partial responsibility for introducing the world to tolerance of gay rights. These songs, produced by famous artists with millions of fans and dollars, provide a powerful support system and call for revision of society’s viewpoint towards the homosexual community. One of the most notable figures in the gay rights movement was Harvey Milk, an openly gay American politician elected in the 80s; the movie “Milk” stemmed from his struggle in politics as a homosexual. This film directly shows how other genres have additionally participated in the cultural …show more content…
People in society can access this genre by turning on the radio or by watching a television station associated with music; additionally, this genre has globally spread and can be found in many countries throughout the world. And yet it’s slightly more complicated, not all people participating in this genre are consciously aware of the formal features or cultural functions working within. Commonly, people who listen to this genre of music do not realize its specific message is targeting homosexual lifestyle and promoting the gay rights movement. This is how the genre is able to stay alive, by pertaining to a very large audience. Pop music is a popular genre and radio listeners, mostly teens and young adults, are responsible for its flourishing industry. Gay rights pop songs are known to be subtle with their messages they are sending to the audience, they describe their beliefs on gay rights within a song that can be relatable to any other pop song, making the audience less aware of the distinct differences this genre
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.
After reading Richard Dyer’s “In Defense of Disco” I began to think about disco as a product of capitalism. This is something that I had never really thought of before. When I think about the hip-hop industry I think capitalism, but not necessarily disco. In this article Dyer goes on to defend disco by identifying its key characteristics, and relating them to ways in which these characteristics allow gay men to escape the pressures of the dominant heterosexual society. Characteristics such as eroticism, romanticism, and materialism are outlined within Dyer’s article. Even though Disco may have been driven in capitalistic ways, I think that it has created an environment that helps to redefine gender and sexuality. Disco, like many other genres of music, has allowed for the creation of many dynamic cultures. These various sub cultures continue to evolve and flourish over time.
The media considers the1969 Stonewall Riots in New York City the spark of the modern gay rights movement. This occurred after the police raided the Stonewall bar, a popular gay bar in Manhattan’s Greenwich Village. Allyn argues that the new energy and militancy generated by the riot played a crucial role in creating the gay liberation movement. Arguably, the Stonewall Riots have come to resemble the pivotal moment in gay rights history largely because it provided ways for the gay community to resist the social norms. In fact, the riots increased public awareness of gay rights activism (Allyn 157). Gay life after the Stonewall riots, however, was just as varied and complex as it was before. In the following era, ho...
Artists write about what they know; they pull feelings from their heart and their songs relay what the artists’ emotions, whether it be of their hometown, their high school crush, or their experiences. Many artists that came to fame during the twentieth century have a fair share of experiences they share with us in the form of their songs. The twentieth century is comprised of the institution of slavery and its effects, war, gender norms, discrimination based on nationality, sex, race, etc., and countless events that sparked protests and uproars in the United States. Music at this time was a phenomenon, and artists could use it to their advantage. Artists used their music to spread awareness about their cause, influence their listeners, and
The news article I studied is from March 12th 2014 and found in the Fashion and Style section of The New York Times. Its title is “In their Own Terms- the growing transgender presence in Pop culture.” This article outlines the culture surrounding transgender and transgender situations in the United States, whilst following the lives and transformations of some known citizens of pop culture.
The media has had a significant shift from the past in their portrayal of gay people including in gay marriage and gay rights. In the 1980’s and 90’s the subject was much more taboo and the idea of gay marriage was popularly opposed. However today, the majority of Americans support legalizing gay marriage. What could be the reason for such a change? Could it be the media portrayal?
“The unprecedented growth of the gay community in recent history has transformed our culture and consciousness, creating radically new possibilities for people to ‘come out’ and live more openly as homosexuals”(Herdt 2). Before the 1969 Stonewall riot in New York, homosexuality was a taboo subject. Research concerning homosexuality emphasized the etiology, treatment, and psychological adjustment of homosexuals. Times have changed since 1969. Homosexuals have gained great attention in arts, entertainment, media, and politics. Yesterday’s research on homosexuality has expanded to include trying to understand the different experiences and situations of homosexuals (Ben-Ari 89-90).
The 1990s saw surge of gay characters in both television and movies. From Ellen Degeneres and her character Ellen Morgan coming out under much scrutiny on the TV show ‘Ellen,’ to Julia Roberts and Rupert Everett comedically playing off each other in the motion picture ‘My Best Friend’s Wedding.’ Sure, gays and lesbians have been around forever, especially in Hollywood. But never has there been a time to be more out. With the popularity of shows like Will and Grace, which feature leading gay characters, as well as Dawson’s Creek and it’s supporting character of teenager Jack McPhee, we are slowly seeing gay and lesbian characters creeping into the mainstream media.
The basic style of the music is pop and world. Pop music, also known as popular music, is “professional music which draws upon both folk music and fine arts music.” This means that pop music is a variety of sources including classical, jazz, rock, and fine arts music which
Gender is a sociological factor which is a set of relationships, attributes, roles, beliefs and attitudes of human. On the other hand, sexuality can be referred into two traits. First is Biological; second is Physiological. Biological trait is about the difference of sex organs, the production of estrogen or testosterone. Physiological trait is about the difference of facial features, size of bones, shoulders, muscles, fatty issues. According to American Psychological Association, gender and sexuality impacts and is impacted by cultural, political, legal, and philosophical aspects of life. As popular culture is the culture of today, which is always based on universal activities, it is effortless to alter the mind of human so the concept of gender and sexuality would be easier to change. Therefore, this essay is going to discuss about how popular culture affects gender and sexuality in human's attitudes.
An issue that has, in recent years, begun to increase in arguments, is the acceptability of homosexuality in society. Until recently, homosexuality was considered strictly taboo. If an individual was homosexual, it was considered a secret to be kept from all family, friends, and society. However, it seems that society has begun to accept this lifestyle by allowing same sex couples. The idea of coming out of the closet has moved to the head of homosexual individuals when it used to be the exception.
Starting from the previous couple decades, labels such as ‘Parental Discretion’ and ‘PG Ratings’ have emerged. All of this is an effort to challenge the content that roams free in the media around us. Music is a universal ‘language’ that has spread and mostly effects each and everybody’s life simultaneously. Artists create music for their listeners but it goes through all the censorship regulations implied to ‘protect our society’. Is it really working? I don’t think so. Today, people themselves choose to be offended as artists and performers have worked their way around saying what cannot be said.
This articles brings lyrics from a song that was previously considered offensive, which is now clean by today’s standards, and effectively argues for freedom of speech.
With the music being the highly profitable, capitalist enterprise that it is today, it is no wonder that it is controlled and regulated by a few large conglomerates that exist is today’s world. It is important to make clear that although evidence is being presented of the positive aspects of globalization through music that there is overwhelming evidence that cultural imperialism is more than it seems on the outside. One must keep in mind that cultural imperialism, globalization and the creation of a global village is a business. People are profiting at other people’s loss of cultural identity, they are sold a culture and heritage. With the every growing N’Sync fan clubs and Britney clones, the world is turning into a stage for pop culture and its glamorous unattainable standards.