The 60s: East Coast Politics

East Coast Politics
In the mid 60s homophile groups became increasingly more radical and made use of direct-action protests. In 1965 ECHO organized picket-line protests of government discrimination in the White House, the State Department, and the Pentagon. They also planned an annual reminder picketing at Independence Hall in Philadelphia on July Fourth to remind the general public that homosexuals didn't have the same freedoms as other Americans. This in itself was an amazingly courageous act. At the time it was taboo to openly express your homosexuality, however these people gave away their anonymity in order to progress gay civil rights.

In New York, Mattachine president Dick Leitsch and two other Mattachine members, Craig Rodwell and John Timmons, held a 'sip-in' on 1966 to protest the State Liquor Authority's policy of closing down bars that served homosexuals. The three men went to several bars (with reporters), admitted their homosexuality to the bartender, and then attempted to purchase a drink. The first two bars gave them drinks, but the third denied them. The Mattachine society thus filed a complaint with the State Liquor Authority and in 1967 the court ruled that serving a homosexual did not constitute having your liquor license revoked.

In 1966 homophile organizations from across the country organized to create one national group: NACHO, the North American Conference of Homosexual Organizations. This groups began to compile studies and legal cases which progressed the gay rights movement. In 1968 NACHO adopted "Gay Is Good" as its slogan. However, though progress was being made few American's were even aware of these organizations, and in comparison to the black rights movement little headway was being made.

The 60s: Dr. Franklin Kameny and Early Politics

Dr. Franklin Kameny
In 1957 Dr. Franklin Kameny was fired from his work at the U.S. Army map service because of his homosexuality. Kameny was outraged by this decision as he had a Ph.D. in astronomy from Harvard and was qualified for the position. This act also barred him from other career opportunities as it was now on his records that he was homosexual. In 1961 Kameny co-founded the Mattachine Society of Washington D.C. and was elected its president. Through the Mattachine Society Kameny would prove himself as one of the most influential gay activists of his time.

Kameny's first priority was his fight with the federal government over the ban of homosexuals from civil employment. In 1962 Kameny's Mattachine Society wrote letters to government leaders in Congress, the Supreme Court, the Cabinet, and the White House. Over the course of the year Kameny and his supporters continuously pressured officials for meaningful dialogue on the topic and eventually got the American Civil Liberties Union to change its stance on gay rights. Originally (1957) the ACLU supported sodomy statues as well as the bang of GLBTQ individuals from government jobs. However, by 1964 the organization had changed its stance and even encouraged its branches to take on gay rights cases.

Kameny strongly believed that homophile organizations remove homosexuality as being a psychiatric disorder.  In 1964 Kameny gave a speech in which he stated that the "entire homophile movement is going to stand or fall upon the question of whether homosexuality is a sickness, and upon our taking a firm stand on it." In 1965 the Washington Mattachine approved an anti-sickness resolution and GLBTQ organizations joined in an annual conferenced called the East Coast Homophile Organization (ECHO).

Daughters of Bilitis

Daughters of Bilitis was the first lesbian rights organization in the US. Organized in 1955, the organization began to release a newsletter titled 'The Ladder' for lesbian women. In 1963 Barbara Gittings, editor of 'The Ladder', met Kameny at an ECHO conference. The two became close friends and through working with him Gittings became more frustrated with the Daughters of Bilitis's dependence on authorities who had little concern over GLBTQ matters. Gittings thus changed the presentation of The Ladder and made it a more provocative and liberal piece. Unfortunately reactions were mostly negative and soon Gittings and other radical DOB members left to work independently. 

 California: the Homosexual Capital 

In 1959 San Francisco mayoral candidate Russell Wolden attempted to win paranoid votes by stating that San Francisco was quickly turning into the homosexual capital of America. Unfortunately for Wolden this tactic lost him votes as newspapers attacked him for "stigmatizing" the city. Though he lost the race the implications he had made had cemented-- San Francisco was becoming America's gay mecca. In 1961 famous drag performer Jose Sarria would run as a city supervisor. Though he lost the race, this did stir the homosexual community and made it clear the LGBTQ community could have political power.

In 1961 a San Francisco homophile group, the League for Civil Education, started publishing LCE News and distributing them at the city's gay bars. Attempting to reach out to LGBTQ individuals who attended bars had never been tried before and it turned out to be huge success printing more copies in its first year than ONE, The Ladder, and the Mattachine Review had combined. 

At the same time a group of San Francisco gay bars formed the Tavern Guild to provide coordinated legal defense against arrests and harassment of gay establishments. Then in 1964, Bill and Nancy May, Bill Plath, and others formed the Society for Individual Rights o focus on building a community of homosexuals in San Francisco. The SIR was largely organized and focuses around the interests of the members. Because of the SIR's willingness to appease it members, within two years the SIR became the largest homophile organization in the country. 

The 60s: San Francisco and Randy Wicker

San Francisco, 1965
In the early 60s progressive clergymen would often take to the streets to minister to marginalized peoples. Rev. Ted McIlvenna (picture below) was one of these clergymen. Working for the Glide Urban Center, a Methodist organization in San Francisco, Ted witnessed the oppression of young homosexuals and hoped to improve the relationship between clergy and LGBTQ individuals.

Ted decided to bring homosexual activists together with protestant ministers to discuss how to create positive conversation between the two groups. Through his efforts the Council on Religion and the Homosexual (CRH) was formed. The CRH thus became the first organization in the U.S. to use the word "homosexual" in its name.

To raise money for the CRH a costume ball was to be held on New Year's Day, 1965. Though the event was  simply to raise money, the 600 ticket holders arrived (many dressed in drag) to be greeted by scores of police who harrassed them as they entered the ball. Soon the police demanded to enter the event, but were blocked by CRH lawyers. The outraged police then arrested three lawyers and one ticket taker.

The next day the heterosexual clergy of the CRH held a press conference in which they criticized the reaction of the San Fransisco police and accused them of harassment towards the gay community. The mayor and a city judge sided with the CRH and the police complied with a public apology. This event is one of the first instances in American history in which the community came together to organize for gay rights.

Randy Wicker 
By the early 1960s public discussion of homosexuality had increased. Lesbian pulp novels, written mostly for straight men, gave solace and comfort to women attempting to understand their homosexuality. In 1961 Hollywood's Production Code was revised to allow homosexuality to be portrayed in film. Such films as 'The Children's Hour' and 'Advise and Consent' attest to this-- both showing sympathetic portrayals of homosexual characters. Even newspapers joined the conversation as such writings as The New York Times, Newsweek, Life, Time, Look, and Harpers began running articles on the homosexual subculture.

Many of these articles were arranged by Charles Hayden, a gay activist who used the fake name Randy Wicker. 'Randy Wicker' in his youth attempted to advertise and build up the Mattachine Society-- one of the earliest homophile associations in America. Wicker wanted to increase the visibility of the LGBTQ community, however Wicker found that many gay New Yorkers were apprehensive about bringing their lifestyle to the surface.

Wicker increased his efforts in 1962 when he founded the homosexual League of New York. Ironically this 'league' consisted of only Wicker himself. Presenting himself as representative of the league, Wicker brought attention to the gay community by broadcasting a show in which seven gay men spoke about their lives. Wicker would then continuously send out press releases, and before long was one of the lead voices of gay visibility in America.

The 60s: The Stonewall Riots

The American 60s and 70s is noted as the period in which views on homosexuality began to change dramatically. Fueled by the implications of such major events as the Stonewall Riots (1969) and the removal of homosexuality from the American Psychiatric Associations Diagnostic and Statistical Manual (1973), the country as a whole began to address homosexuality as a serious topic.

The Stonewall Riots

Many people attribute the beginning of the gay civil rights movement with that of the Stonewall riots on June 27th and 28th of 1969.  In New York City riots erupted in response to police harassment of customers of a local gay bar called the Stonewall Inn.

The Stonewall Inn's clientele consisted of  mostly men, drag queens, and the occasional lesbian. In order to get past the need for a liquor license the bar listed itself as a "bottle club." This would mean the inn was not meant to sell alcohol, however, Mafia owners paid $2,000 weekly to bribe the police to keep the bar open. Even so, the bar was raided monthly and the $2,000 in bribes only ensured a tip that the police were coming.

These tips, though short in advance, gave patrons the chance to stop dancing/touching and the bartenders the chance to jump the bar and pretend they were a customer, thus decreasing their chance of being arrested.

On June 27th 1969 the assumed tip never came. Eight detectives raided the bar, and while few customers were arrested onlookers revolted angered by the continuous police harassment. The police retreated into the bar not having expected homosexuals to fight back. Taking a hostage, the police barricaded themselves in the bar while Stonewall supporters and patrons rioted outside. Both queer and police support came, and for the ensuing days police harassment of 'feminine boys' and gay protest reached an all time high. 

By the following day the number of people had reached the thousands. Chaos ensued as police began to randomly beat civilians and rioters hurled bottles and garbage at the police. Passing cars were terrorized and rocked back and forth-- the calamity lasted until 4 AM of the next morning. 

The Aftermath

In the LGBTQ community there were mixed reactions of the Stonewall Riots. Wealthier gays who would spend their time on the popular gay destination Fire Island were happy to see the bar go, noting it as tacky and bad for the image of the gay community. Activist and author Randy Wicker voiced these concerns: "Screaming queens forming chorus lines and kicking went against everything I wanted people to think about homosexuals...that we were a bunch of drag queens in the Village acting disorderly and tacky and cheap."

Despite such sentiments of wealthier homophiles, the Stonewall Rebellion became a force and symbol of the gay rights movement that would propel the need for equality forward. Poet and activist Allen Ginsberg expressed this in his description of the revolting Stonewall customers: "beautiful-- they've lost that wonded look that fags all had ten years ago."