The White House
Introduction
Text-to-speech Audio
Images
The Mattachine Society picketing in front of the White House in 1965
Backstory and Context
Text-to-speech Audio
Every region had its own LGBTQ+ movement that inspired change. For New York, it was the Stonewall Riot. For the District of Columbia, it was series of events. In the 1950s, the "Lavender Scare" (following the Red Scare) caused thousands of government employees who were believed to be gay or lesbian to be fired. As a result, in 1961, the Mattachine Society, a gay rights organization, began recruiting in D.C. and started picketing in front of the White House in mainstream clothing. Their goal was to seem acceptable and employable.
Although very little change came from these efforts, it marked the beginning of DC's LGBTQ+ movement
Sources
Kirchick, James. Stonewall Wasn’t the Start of the Gay Rights Struggle, The Wall Street Journal. June 22nd 2019. Accessed December 8th 2020. https://www.wsj.com/articles/stonewall-wasnt-the-start-of-the-gay-rights-struggle-11561176061.
Srikanth, Anagha. From Stonewall to the White House: the LGBTQ+ rights movement in DC, WTOP News. June 28th 2019. Accessed December 8th 2020. https://wtop.com/dc/2019/06/from-stonewall-to-the-white-house-the-lgbtq-rights-movement-in-dc/.
The Wall Street Journal