The decade of the 1970s, represents a period of transformation for gays and lesbians, particularly those living in America's coastal cities. This transformation was about visibility. During those years, there was the first gay television movie; an on-screen kiss between two men in Sunday, Blood Sunday; and the release of Cabaret, which has been named the first movie that "really celebrated homosexuality." There were gains in politics too: Edward Koch, then serving in Congress, "became one of the first elected officials to publicly lobby on behalf of the homosexuals of Greenwich Village."Gay Pride Week was established. And most significantly, in December of 1973, the board of the American Psychiatric Association voted 13-0 "to remove homosexuality from its list of psychiatric disorders." A new Gay identity was forming throughout America, leading to many significant and positive changes.
The link to this clip below shows an excerpt from a 1976 New York's public-television station, WNET featured a live, three-hour special called "OUTREACH: LESBIANS AND GAY MEN". This was rare at the time to see the topic of Lesbians or Gays on television, marking a positive advancement in the acknowledgement of this new gay identity. other firsts of the 1970s were early signals of a country and a culture in transformation—a transformation that is still under way today.
https://vimeo.com/85157410
The link to this clip below shows an excerpt from a 1976 New York's public-television station, WNET featured a live, three-hour special called "OUTREACH: LESBIANS AND GAY MEN". This was rare at the time to see the topic of Lesbians or Gays on television, marking a positive advancement in the acknowledgement of this new gay identity. other firsts of the 1970s were early signals of a country and a culture in transformation—a transformation that is still under way today.
https://vimeo.com/85157410
GAY LIBERATION FRONT
Post-Stonewall in the early 1970’s, the Gay Liberation Front (GLF) became a significant force that influenced the trend of advancing Gay civil rights. The front stood for radical gay and lesbian activism, and was influenced by a number of other movements that fought for people’s rights, such as, the civil rights movement, the Black Power movement,, white student movement and feminism. The GLF had goals that were attack the systematic oppression of gays and lesbians, and an analysis of gay oppression and sexism. They aimed to create a common cause with all of the oppresses, not specifically the LGBT community, and they focussed on a commitment to a larger project of political change. They carried out many public demonstrations and had an emphasis on visibility. RELIGIOUS VIEWS Changing Religious views was another significant force in the trend of improving civil and LGBT rights in the USA. This force was recognized through the New England Bishop Statement of the sixteen New England Catholic Bishops, delivered by Cardinal Bernard La, Boston Archdiocese, in June 2000. This statement following the Vermont legislation, recognized civil unions for same sex couples. Inclusion of sexuality in anti discrimination laws also became a key force in the historical trend of improving equal LGBT and civil rights. Proposition was a California state constitutional amendment, passed in the November 2008 elections. It said that "only marriage between a man and a woman is valid or recognized in California." Further on in July 2010, the US District court ruled that Proposition 8 was not constitutional. This was very significant force that helped improve the trend of gaining equal civil and LGBT rights for people of America. LGBT IN THE MILITARY Introducing LGBT members as an equal and welcome part of the US military was a key force in the influencing of the improvement of LGBT and civil rights in the USA. The opposition of military compromise and the ‘Don’t ask, don’t tell” D.A.D.T. This was passed in 1993, The term was conceived after Clinton in 1993 signed a law directing that military personnel “don’t ask, don’t tell, don’t pursue, and don’t harass.” This compromise went into effect on October 1, 1993 and the policy theoretically lifted a ban on homosexual service that had been instituted during World War II. It was a small step towards the improvement in LGBT rights in USA, but did not allow LGBT members of the US military to be open about their sexuality. But on November the 30th, 2010, the DADT was overturned by Colonel Greta Cammermeyer and Lieutenant Daniel Choy. |