20 Historic Moments in the Fight for LGBTQ Rights

          In Honor of the Pride Month 

- As we celebrate Pride Month across the country this month, many of us are thinking about the current issues confronting the LGBTQ community and what we can do to address them in the future. While it is critical to keep moving forward, it is also critical to look back and see how far we have come. So, before you head out to the next Pride parade, consider some of the most significant events in our country's history that have pushed the LGBTQ rights movement forward.

1924: The first gay rights group is established.

In Chicago, Henry Gerber, a World War I veteran, established the Society for Human Rights. The organization was the first gay rights organization in America, and its newsletter, "Friendship and Freedom," was the first gay rights publication in the United States.

January, 1958: The Supreme Court rules in favor of gay rights.

After the United States Postal Service refused to deliver America's first widely distributed pro-gay publication, ONE: The Homosexual Magazine, the case went to the United States Supreme Court — and the court ruled in favor of gay rights for the first time, making it a major landmark case in LGBTQ history.

April 21, 1966: The Mattachine Society organizes a gay rights “Sip-In.”

During a time when most bars refused to serve gay people, the Mattachine Society, one of the country's first gay rights organizations, staged a "Sip-In," in which activists entered a New York City bar, declared themselves to be gay, ordered drinks, and waited to be served.

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June 28, 1969: The Stonewall riots spark the beginning of the LGBT movement.

On June 28, 1969, police raided the Stonewall Inn, a gay bar in New York City, and the customers and their supporters took a stand. The event devolved into a violent protest, resulting in a days-long series of riots. The "Stonewall riots" are widely regarded as the beginning of the LGBTQ civil rights movement in the United States.

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1973: Homosexuality is no longer declared a mental illness.

After years of research, analysis, and shifting cultural attitudes, the American Psychiatric Association's board of directors removed homosexuality from the official list of mental illnesses known as the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, a decision that was confirmed by a vote of the association's membership.

1987: Barney Frank becomes second openly gay member of Congress.

After spending six years on Capitol Hill, Rep. Barney Frank (D-Mass.), voluntarily came out as gay, making him the second openly gay member of congress, and the first to come out voluntarily, in the country’s history.

April, 2000: Vermont takes a huge step toward same-sex marriage legalization.

Vermont was the first state in the country to grant same-sex couples the right to enter into civil unions, which are legal partnerships that provide the same rights and benefits as legal marriages.

October, 2009: The Matthew Shepard & James Byrd Jr. Hate Crimes Prevention Act becomes a law.

The Matthew Shepard and James Byrd, Jr. Hate Crimes Prevention Act was signed into law by President Obama. The act was named after two men who were murdered in hate crimes: Matthew Shepard for being gay and James Byrd, Jr. for being black. Previous hate crime legislation was expanded by the new law to officially classify crimes motivated by actual or perceived gender, sexual orientation, gender identity, or disability as hate crimes.

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