Homosexual History within the U.S.
Thomas Jefferson wanted to make it illegal to be homosexual in the United States. A common punishment was death, but he proposed that males be castrated and females have their noses mutated.
In 1951, the first Gay-Rights Organization was founded. It was called Mattachine Society which consisted of gay men who did street performances on how the social norms of society weren't always right.
Up until 1961, it was illegal to have any sexual contact with a same sex partner. Illinois abolished the law first and soon after more states followed with this decision.
In 1969, police raided a gay bar forcing the activists to revolt, sending them all into three days of riots. This sparked the tradition of Pride Parades which have been held every June since 1970.
Up until 1973, homosexuality was considered a mental illness which was even published in the DSM-II (a book psychiatrists use to determine a mental illness).
President Clinton signed a bill named the anti-gay Defense of Marriages act in 1996. This took away equal rights from same-sex marriages. They were no longer allowed to receive the same benefits as heterosexual couples.
In 1998, Clinton made it illegal to discriminate against homosexuals in the work place.
In 1999, it was made legal to have a partnership registry which soon gave gay couples many of the same rights of hetersexual couples.
In 2003, 14 states still had a law against sexual relations with the same sex. After a trial where two men were arrested in their own apartment, Texas got rid of this law.
In 2004, Massachusetts became the first state to legalize gay marriage.
As of 2011, Massachusetts, Connecticut, California, Iowa, Vermont, New Hampshire, New York and the District of Columbia allow gay marriages with full rights.
In 1951, the first Gay-Rights Organization was founded. It was called Mattachine Society which consisted of gay men who did street performances on how the social norms of society weren't always right.
Up until 1961, it was illegal to have any sexual contact with a same sex partner. Illinois abolished the law first and soon after more states followed with this decision.
In 1969, police raided a gay bar forcing the activists to revolt, sending them all into three days of riots. This sparked the tradition of Pride Parades which have been held every June since 1970.
Up until 1973, homosexuality was considered a mental illness which was even published in the DSM-II (a book psychiatrists use to determine a mental illness).
President Clinton signed a bill named the anti-gay Defense of Marriages act in 1996. This took away equal rights from same-sex marriages. They were no longer allowed to receive the same benefits as heterosexual couples.
In 1998, Clinton made it illegal to discriminate against homosexuals in the work place.
In 1999, it was made legal to have a partnership registry which soon gave gay couples many of the same rights of hetersexual couples.
In 2003, 14 states still had a law against sexual relations with the same sex. After a trial where two men were arrested in their own apartment, Texas got rid of this law.
In 2004, Massachusetts became the first state to legalize gay marriage.
As of 2011, Massachusetts, Connecticut, California, Iowa, Vermont, New Hampshire, New York and the District of Columbia allow gay marriages with full rights.