On Wednesday night, I caught a showing on PBS of the documentary
Screaming Queens: The Riot at Compton's Cafeteria. This lesser known riot in San Francisco's Tenderloin district precedes Stonewall by about three years, yet rarely, if ever to be honest, gets mentioned in recalling our LGBT history.
Too many people erroneously believe that Stonewall was the beginning of the Gay Rights movement. As we continue to discover and write our own history, remember that many things were bubbling underneath the surface many years before that beautiful eruption on Christopher Street.
1924: Henry Gerber Starts Society For Human Rights in Chicago
http://www.gayhistory.com/rev2/factfiles/ff1924.htm1950: Harry Hay and some friends form the Mattachine Society
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mattachine_Society1955: Daughters of Bilitis is formed
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Daughters_of_BilitisI'm sure there are countless other examples of our brothers and sisters standing up for equality that may never get the recognition they earned by bucking the conventional wisdom of their era. So if for just a moment this weekend, as Pride month comes to a close, please think of all those that came before us, for without them, we would not be where we are today.
On edit: Here's a link to the Compton's Cafe Riot
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Compton%27s_Cafeteria_riot