Disclaimer: I collaboratively wrote this paper with my former classmate Lilly Bittman

January 18, 2022

The Significance of Gay and Trans Liberation

The Stonewall Riots are often considered the earliest resistance against oppression from the LGBTQ+ community. However, before Marsha P. Johnson and protests on the east coast, a movement launched on the west coast three years earlier. Compton’s Cafeteria Riot initially stood for trans rights during the 1960s within the Tenderloin, a district of San Francisco known for its illegal activity. The stride for transgender rights later evolved into the pursuit of freedom for the entire LGBTQ+ community across the country for decades to come. Similarities between the 1960s and present-day transgender issues and advocacy are evident; while progress is still necessary, there have been significant improvements in progressive activism. These riots set into motion a national conversation that continued to grow as protests like the Stonewall Riots followed in Compton’s legacy.

In 1966, Compton’s Cafeteria Riot occurred in the Tenderloin district of San Francisco, California. At night, outsiders would visit this district for sex and drugs, but during the day, it was known as a “gay ghetto” for drag queens and transgender citizens forced to live there. Most housing buildings beyond the Tenderloin would not let them rent, restricting trans’ homes to a few available hotels. The same went for employers, which caused many drag queens to turn to prostitution and “[selling themselves] because [they] needed to make a living” (Screaming Queens). The Tenderloin was referred to as a vice-ridden district controlled by policemen who overlooked crime in exchange for money. In such a corrupt culture, drag queens would gather at Gene Compton’s Cafeteria, a diner open all night in the heart of the Tenderloin. Groups often met there to show each other that they had survived the night, considering that prostitution was a dangerous job for trans women. Despite Compton’s being a common place for transgender people to gather, police officers of San Francisco regularly patrolled through the restaurant and arrested people for cross-dressing. They targeted people to arrest who appeared male but had long hair or wore makeup. Long hair became an especially stigmatized physical trait as the Vietnam War proceeded and anti-war efforts were organized by those with longer hair and clothing labeled too feminine for men. At this point, drag queens and transgender women were targeted for not only cross-dressing, but also for the accusation of opposing the war.

As transgender people experienced discrimination within the Tenderloin, African Americans began protesting against racism across the country. That same courage that brought a surge of human rights demonstrations was echoed in the Tenderloin district for the LGBTQ+ community. Dr. Harry Benjamin contributed to the momentum through his book “The Transsexual Phenomenom”, which gave transgender people a name to what they were feeling, in addition to a guidebook for sex-reassignment surgery. Following Benjamin’s book, the transgender community within the Tenderloin took a stand against this oppressive society in July of 1966 when they formed Vanguard, a gay militant group. Meetings were held at Gene Compton’s Cafeteria, which brought more tension to the already strained presence at the diner. Tensions finally erupted in August of that year when police raided Compton’s. With frustration after years of mistreatment, a drag queen threw coffee in the officer’s face when he tried to grab her. People within the restaurant began to throw everything they could at the officers until the police were forced into the street to call for backup. About sixty people stormed out of Gene Compton’s Cafeteria and continued fighting until more policemen arrived and eventually detained them. At the end of the night, there was a police car destroyed, a newsstand on fire, and a historic change within the Tenderloin.

Glide Memorial Methodist Church became united with the LGBTQ+ community in the Tenderloin during the 1960s, leading up to Compton's Cafeteria Riot. The minister, Cecil Williams, was an anti-apartheid advocate and eventually included LGBTQ+ rights into his discussions about equality. He reached out to transgender youth living on the streets in the Tenderloin by holding a night service for them. With Williams supporting the LGBTQ+ community through the church, great momentum was transformed into action for transgender rights. Between the community force and the riot itself, these efforts caused the relationship between police units and transgender women to change drastically in the Tenderloin. Transgender people were able to dress as they wanted publicly, with police leaving them alone. Elliot Blackstone, a police officer of San Francisco during the 1960s, was greatly impacted by the riot and researched homosexuality and transgenderism to further his understanding. Blackstone began pushing for transgender rights by speaking out against cross-dressing bans and starting programs that would give transgender people a place to voice the disturbance and suffering they experienced. One center opened that allowed transgender people to obtain ID cards that displayed their preferred gender. With ID cards that correctly portrayed who they were, transgender people could pursue safer jobs through the War on Poverty program. Two years later, Stanford University Medical Center opened a clinic for sex-reassignment surgery. Undergoing surgery was essential for many transgender people to start a new life, and a nearby clinic made transitioning remarkably easier. San Francisco eventually passed a transgender anti-discrimination ordinance in 1995, 29 years after the initial riot.

Following Compton’s Cafeteria Riot in San Francisco, transgender activists organized protests in many other major cities throughout the country. The most well known resistance to transgender discrimination occurred within Greenwich Village of New York City at the Stonewall Inn. Since same sex relations and cross-dressing were illegal in New York City during the 1960s, members of the LGBTQ+ community would gather in gay bars and clubs for safety. However, law enforcement would shut down these bars because “serving alcohol to gathering homosexuals was disorderly” (History.com). In 1966, activists from the Commission of Human Rights succeeded in abolishing these regulations so that LGBTQ+ customers could be served alcohol. Following the removal of these regulations, the Mattachine Society organized protests where they declared their sexuality and sued the bars who refused them service. However, “engaging in gay behavior in public” (History.com) was still illegal, so the police raids of gay bars continued, leading up to the most infamous police raid at Stonewall Inn that incited the Stonewall Riots.

The Stonewall Inn, renovated by the Genovese crime family, became a gay bar in 1966, welcoming drag queens who were not welcome at other gay clubs. In the bars run by the Mafia, the family bribed the police to ignore their illegal operations. Consequently, officers usually tipped off the bar before they came to raid, giving bartenders the opportunity to hide illegal alcohol and activity. Despite this agreement, the raid of the Stonewall Inn on June 28, 1969 was a surprise. It was one of the most violent and degrading raids, as the “police roughly harassed patrons and employees of the bar” (History.com). People suspected of cross-dressing were forced to verify their sex with police officers in the bathrooms. The violence provoked outrage as people gathered outside the bar, and a blow from an officer to a lesbian woman’s head as he forced her into a police van was the breaking point. The crowd began throwing objects at the police and eventually set the bar on fire after the police barricaded themselves inside. The fire department put out the fire and dispersed the mob, but a much greater flame of passion had been lit under these activists, as protests continued for five more days in the area surrounding Stonewall Inn.

Some of the most prominent figures in transgender activism and the Stonewall Uprising were Marsh P. Johnson and Sylvia Rivera. Together, they founded the Street Transvestite Action Revolutionaries, or STAR. The STAR house was a refuge for LGBTQ+ youth, specifically those of color who were homeless in New York City. Additionally, Silvia Rivera worked on a campaign with the Gay Activists Alliance, but as a transgender Latina woman, even this group discriminated against her, since mostly white men established and ran the organization. This is not the only discrimination transgender people have experienced from their own community. Johnson and Rivera both commented on how transgender people were treated as lesser in the LGBTQ+ community. Drag Queens were even banned from the 1973 Pride march, so Johnson and Rivera marched ahead of the parade instead, sending the message that they would not be cast aside by their own community. Their resilience and bravery inspired many other trans and gay rights organizations outside of New York City.

The Stonewall Inn is the first National Historic Landmark in LGBTQ+ history, but the lesser known second national landmark has just as rich a history. The Henry Gerber House in Chicago founded the first official organization that advocated for equal rights of homosexuals: the Society for Human Rights. Henry Gerber immigrated from Germany and wanted to see their progressive views from the early 1900s implemented in America. He published the first homosexual periodical “Friendship and Freedom”, but was only able to produce two issues before being shut down and arrested. The police never had a warrant to search his belongings, but his writings were still taken and never returned. No copies of his periodical survived, and although that piece of history was lost, the presence of his house in Chicago is a tangible reminder of yet another advocate for LGBTQ+ rights.

Without Compton’s Cafeteria Riot and the Stonewall Riots, transgender rights would not have been recognized enough to result in the political change needed to protect not only transgender people, but all members of the LGBTQ community. These events spread awareness and advocated for human rights in the following years and into the present-day. However, the discrimination debate persists even in our progressing society. Since 2015, there has been a national surge of anti LGBTQ+ legislation, and 2021 became the worst year yet with 17 anti-LGBTQ bills enacted into law and 11 more awaiting approval from governors. Child health and welfare groups sought opposition of the bills from lawmakers because most of the bills target transgender youth. In addition, major companies such as Facebook, Pfizer, Amazon, Apple, Google, Microsoft, and Uber have also voiced disapproval of anti-transgender bills. Over 550 college athletes have also advocated for the removal of championships in states with anti-trans sports legislation. The basis for these bills is generally not originating from public concern or legislative bodies, but strictly from anti-LGBTQ organizations. These bills indicate that anti-LGBTQ+ legislation is worth spending billions of dollars on, despite being not only harmful emotionally and personally to transgender youth and adults, but economically to the states that enact these bills. Groups known for being against trans rights have a majority that oppose these bills. “66% of registered Republicans and at least 60% of people who voted for Donald Trump'' (Ronan) believe trans people should be allowed to live freely and openly. The government has spent excessive amounts of money to pass legislation that directly hurts this community despite the fact that many people do not believe it is necessary.

Though the debate of trans rights is far from over, Compton’s Cafeteria Riot and the Stonewall Riots built the foundation that we rely on today. Both diplomatic methods and outright protests were used as part of that foundation of LGBTQ+ activism and advancements in the legislature. These historical figures built a groundwork that continues to be used in present-day debates and diplomatic exchanges for transgender and gay rights. Although many battles have been won on the side of LGBTQ+ equality, the work is not over and the debates will continue. Considering the passionate history, it proves that disputes will not stop until this community has complete freedom to be unequivocally and unapologetically, themselves.