Gay Rights Legislation Paper
Gay Rights Legislation
Mirissa Branine
Northwestern Oklahoma State University
Abstract
The Road to Equality
Introduction
There are approximately nine million people in America that represent the Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender (LGBT) community. That represents 3.5% of the American population, with that number expected to rise as new legislation makes it safer and more acceptable for the LGBT community to identify themselves (Williams Institute, 2011). The purpose of this paper is to discuss current legislation in the Federal government pertaining to LGBT rights, as well as cover the history of LGBT legislation. The American Government has come a long way with gay rights, but there is still …show more content…
Hodges that state limitations on same-sex marriage violates the Fourteenth Amendment, making all state bans on same-sex marriages illegal. This Supreme Court decision took the decision of gay rights legislation, when it comes to marriage, out of the hands of the states, making it a federal issue. This ruling made it legal for same-sex couples to marry in all 50 states. The problem with the rulings, though, was that it did not provide instructions on implementation within the individual states (Duke, 2015). This paper will focus on legislation on the Federal level and will cover issues and rights that the LGBT community has been fighting for. As you will read later in the paper, marriage is not the only rights that the LGBT community lacked, there were many policies that passed through the United States government to get the country where it is today in terms of …show more content…
“The disruptions of World War II allowed formerly isolated gay men and women to meet as soldiers, war workers, and other volunteers uprooted from small towns and posted worldwide” (History, n.d.). It was not until the 1950’s that the gay and lesbians began demanding equality when Senator Joseph McCarthy began investigating homosexuals that held government jobs. In 1950, Harry Hay and Chuck Rowland founded the Mattachine Society, the first organization recognizing gay men as an “oppressed cultural minority”. The Mattachine Society is considered by many to be the founder of the gay rights movement. Other advocacy groups began forming including One, Inc. in 1952, Daughters of Bilitis in 1955, which was the first lesbian support group founded in San Francisco. These groups laid the groundwork for today’s landmark victories in the LBGT community by holding meetings, hosting outreach programs, handing out pamphlets, and soon they were catching the attention of sociologists and psychologists. On June 28, 1969, a small group of activists encouraged a widespread protest for equal rights; patrons of a small neighborhood bar, Stonewall Inn in New York, fought police raids of the Stonewall Inn. This created a lot of pride in the gay community and is still felt in the present day Pride
Mirissa Branine
Northwestern Oklahoma State University
Abstract
The Road to Equality
Introduction
There are approximately nine million people in America that represent the Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender (LGBT) community. That represents 3.5% of the American population, with that number expected to rise as new legislation makes it safer and more acceptable for the LGBT community to identify themselves (Williams Institute, 2011). The purpose of this paper is to discuss current legislation in the Federal government pertaining to LGBT rights, as well as cover the history of LGBT legislation. The American Government has come a long way with gay rights, but there is still …show more content…
Hodges that state limitations on same-sex marriage violates the Fourteenth Amendment, making all state bans on same-sex marriages illegal. This Supreme Court decision took the decision of gay rights legislation, when it comes to marriage, out of the hands of the states, making it a federal issue. This ruling made it legal for same-sex couples to marry in all 50 states. The problem with the rulings, though, was that it did not provide instructions on implementation within the individual states (Duke, 2015). This paper will focus on legislation on the Federal level and will cover issues and rights that the LGBT community has been fighting for. As you will read later in the paper, marriage is not the only rights that the LGBT community lacked, there were many policies that passed through the United States government to get the country where it is today in terms of …show more content…
“The disruptions of World War II allowed formerly isolated gay men and women to meet as soldiers, war workers, and other volunteers uprooted from small towns and posted worldwide” (History, n.d.). It was not until the 1950’s that the gay and lesbians began demanding equality when Senator Joseph McCarthy began investigating homosexuals that held government jobs. In 1950, Harry Hay and Chuck Rowland founded the Mattachine Society, the first organization recognizing gay men as an “oppressed cultural minority”. The Mattachine Society is considered by many to be the founder of the gay rights movement. Other advocacy groups began forming including One, Inc. in 1952, Daughters of Bilitis in 1955, which was the first lesbian support group founded in San Francisco. These groups laid the groundwork for today’s landmark victories in the LBGT community by holding meetings, hosting outreach programs, handing out pamphlets, and soon they were catching the attention of sociologists and psychologists. On June 28, 1969, a small group of activists encouraged a widespread protest for equal rights; patrons of a small neighborhood bar, Stonewall Inn in New York, fought police raids of the Stonewall Inn. This created a lot of pride in the gay community and is still felt in the present day Pride