Stonewall Riots Essay

The attitudes towards the LGBTQ+ community in the United States have been significantly altered throughout the twentieth and into the twenty-first century. The LGBTQ+ community was once completely hidden and ostracized, and today they have made significant gains in both their societal and legal standing, though this community still faces a lot of systematic oppression and violence. The Stonewall Riots served as the climax of a lot of the pent up frustrations of the LGBTQ+ community and eventually led to significant changes in today’s society. The activism leading up to and after the riots have dramatically altered the ways in which our society views sexuality and gender.
Throughout the early twentieth century, members of the LGBTQ+ community were forced to erase parts of their

On June 28, 1969, a police raid of the Stonewall Inn led to multiple days of rioting that are said to have launched the “gay rights movement.” As the anger of many individuals, especially young gay people, had risen throughout the sixties, the events at the Stonewall Inn were a representation of the culmination and subsequent explosion of those frustrations. The riots gave people across the country the power to say “no more,” encouraging a strong sense of activism. Unfortunately, the Stonewall Riots only seemed to launch activism for gay people.
Though the Stonewall riots were started by trans-women of color, individuals from this group are still largely forgotten and lack many rights and protections.
The Stonewall Inn was recently declared a National Historic Site. This served as a validation and recognition of the importance of the LGBTQ+ community in the United States and the importance of their history. It is the first monument to be added to the National Park
System that specifically highlights LGBTQ+ history. For a community that has historically