08-29-2011, 10:46 AM
Being fourteen years old and living in England I certainly can't claim to have been there, but I think I remember something of this being on our news bulletins. It is a little difficult to be sure because there were popular expressions of dissatisfaction with the status quo in so many countries during that period, not to mention a both a deep mistrust of many things American and an unquestioning adulation of others. In my memory it is all a bit muddled with other civil rights actions, anti Vietnam war demonstrations and the rise of the so-called counter-culture.
While Stonewall undoubtedly became a symbol for gay emancipation I have read since of dramatic events that took place in Los Angeles in 1959 and at Compton's Café in San Francisco in 1966 that don't have such an iconic place in GLBTQI history or even mythology.
I find it hard to believe that the death of Judy Garland was as much to do with the Stonewall riots as some people claim. Surely, as The Rolling Stones recorded at the time, it was as much a case of
"Everywhere I hear the sound of marching, charging feet, boy
'Cause summer's here and the time is right for fighting in the street, boy ..."
as anything else?
The aftermath (sorry, another Stones reference
) is interesting though. Pride marches and demonstrations were established in commemoration of the events at Stonewall but too often these days are watered down or caricatured merely as parties and piss-ups. If we forget our pasts we risk falling into the same old traps in our futures. Learn your history, boys and girls, and keep your eyes and ears open.
What can a poor boy do?
While Stonewall undoubtedly became a symbol for gay emancipation I have read since of dramatic events that took place in Los Angeles in 1959 and at Compton's Café in San Francisco in 1966 that don't have such an iconic place in GLBTQI history or even mythology.
I find it hard to believe that the death of Judy Garland was as much to do with the Stonewall riots as some people claim. Surely, as The Rolling Stones recorded at the time, it was as much a case of
"Everywhere I hear the sound of marching, charging feet, boy
'Cause summer's here and the time is right for fighting in the street, boy ..."
as anything else?
The aftermath (sorry, another Stones reference
) is interesting though. Pride marches and demonstrations were established in commemoration of the events at Stonewall but too often these days are watered down or caricatured merely as parties and piss-ups. If we forget our pasts we risk falling into the same old traps in our futures. Learn your history, boys and girls, and keep your eyes and ears open.What can a poor boy do?
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