The music was great, cafes were good, you know, the coffee houses were good. And they were gay. William Eskridge, Professor of Law:Ed Koch who was a democratic party leader in the Greenwich Village area, was a specific leader of the local forces seeking to clean up the streets. Is that conceivable? The New York Times / Redux Pictures (c) 2011 Few photographs of the raid and the riots that followed exist. Slate:Activity Group Therapy (1950), Columbia University Educational Films. Saying I don't want to be this way, this is not the life I want. Ed Koch, Councilman, New York City:The Stonewall, they didn't have a liquor license and they were raided by the cops regularly and there were pay-offs to the cops, it was awful. They were to us. Read a July 6, 1969excerpt fromTheNew York Daily News. It was nonsense, it was nonsense, it was all the people there, that were reacting and opposing what was occurring. The documentary shows how homosexual people enjoyed and shared with each other. Before Stonewall - Trailer BuskFilms 12.6K subscribers Subscribe 14K views 10 years ago Watch the full film here (UK & IRE only): http://buskfilms.com/films/before-sto. Seymour Pine, Deputy Inspector, Morals Division, NYPD:Well, I had to act like I wasn't nervous. When you exit, have some identification and it'll be over in a short time." Nobody. Yvonne Ritter:I did try to get out of the bar and I thought that there might be a way out through one of the bathrooms. Jerry Hoose:And I got to the corner of Sixth Avenue and Eighth Street, crossed the street and there I had found Nirvana. Raymond Castro:There were mesh garbage cans being lit up on fire and being thrown at the police. It was an age of experimentation. Stonewall Forever is a documentary from NYC's LGBT Community Center directed by Ro Haber. And all of a sudden, pandemonium broke loose. This was ours, here's where the Stonewall was, here's our Mecca. People talk about being in and out now, there was no out, there was just in. Seymour Pine, Deputy Inspector, Morals Division, NYPD:If someone was dressed as a woman, you had to have a female police officer go in with her. The most infamous of those institutions was Atascadero, in California. Never, never, never. Howard Smith, Reporter,The Village Voice:At a certain point, it felt pretty dangerous to me but I noticed that the cop that seemed in charge, he said you know what, we have to go inside for safety. Because one out of three of you will turn queer. Narrator (Archival):This is one of the county's principal weekend gathering places for homosexuals, both male and female. Fred Sargeant:The tactical patrol force on the second night came in even larger numbers, and were much more brutal. They were the storm troopers. And I raised my hand at one point and said, "Let's have a protest march." The last time I saw him, he was a walking vegetable. Suzanne Poli Dick Leitsch:And so the cops came with these buses, like five buses, and they all were full of tactical police force. Lucian Truscott, IV, Reporter,The Village Voice:And then the next night. Don't fire until I fire. I would wait until there was nobody left to be the girl and then I would be the girl. Doric Wilson:And we were about 100, 120 people and there were people lining the sidewalks ahead of us to watch us go by, gay people, mainly. Before Stonewall was nominated for the Grand Jury Prize at the 1985 Sundance Film Festival. Seymour Wishman Martha Shelley:We participated in demonstrations in Philadelphia at Independence Hall. And they started smashing their heads with clubs. Because to be gay represented to me either very, super effeminate men or older men who hung out in the upper movie theatres on 42nd Street or in the subway T-rooms, who'd be masturbating. Do you understand me?". So gay people were being strangled, shot, thrown in the river, blackmailed, fired from jobs. We didn't want to come on, you know, wearing fuzzy sweaters and lipstick, you know, and being freaks. Jerry Hoose:The police would come by two or three times a night. Obama signed the memorandum to extend benefits to same-sex partners of federal employees. "We're not going.". Corbis Yvonne Ritter:And then everybody started to throw pennies like, you know, this is what they were, they were nothing but copper, coppers, that's what they were worth. Seymour Pine, Deputy Inspector, Morals Division, NYPD:We were looking for secret exits and one of the policewomen was able to squirm through the window and they did find a way out. John O'Brien:It was definitely dark, it was definitely smelly and raunchy and dirty and that's the only places that we had to meet each other, was in the very dirty, despicable places. John O'Brien:And then somebody started a fire, they started with little lighters and matches. They are taught that no man is born homosexual and many psychiatrists now believe that homosexuality begins to form in the first three years of life. Daniel Pine It was a down at a heels kind of place, it was a lot of street kids and things like that. Beginning of our night out started early. John O'Brien:Heterosexuals, legally, had lots of sexual outlets. Martin Boyce:All of a sudden, Miss New Orleans and all people around us started marching step by step and the police started moving back. William Eskridge, Professor of Law:The federal government would fire you, school boards would fire you. Raymond Castro:If that light goes on, you know to stop whatever you're doing, and separate. Long before marriage equality, non-binary gender identity, and the flood of new documentaries commemorating this month's 50th anniversary of the Greenwich Village uprising that begat the gay rights movement, there was Greta Schiller's Before Stonewall.Originally released in 1984as AIDS was slowly killing off many of those bar patrons-turned-revolutionariesthe film, through the use of . Narrator (Archival):Richard Enman, president of the Mattachine Society of Florida, whose goal is to legalize homosexuality between consenting adults, was a reluctant participant in tonight's program. Jerry Hoose:Who was gonna complain about a crackdown against gay people? Because that's what they were looking for, any excuse to try to bust the place. And then there were all these priests ranting in church about certain places not to go, so you kind of knew where you could go by what you were told not to do. Raymond Castro Liz Davis There were gay bars in Midtown, there were gay bars uptown, there were certain kinds of gay bars on the Upper East Side, you know really, really, really buttoned-up straight gay bars. That was our world, that block. There was no going back now, there was no going back, there was no, we had discovered a power that we weren't even aware that we had. and someone would say, "Well, they're still fighting the police, let's go," and they went in. The award-winning documentary film, Before Stonewall, which was released theatrically and broadcast on PBS television in 1984, explored the history of the lesbian and gay rights movement in the United States prior to 1969. Louis Mandelbaum On June 27, 1969, police raided The Stonewall Inn, a gay bar in New York. Slate:The Homosexuals(1967), CBS Reports. We heard one, then more and more. Danny Garvin:People were screaming "pig," "copper." Mike Wallace (Archival):Two out of three Americans look upon homosexuals with disgust, discomfort or fear. For the first time the next person stood up. TV Host (Archival):Are those your own eyelashes? Newly restored for the 50th Anniversary of the Stonewall Riots, Before Stonewall pries open the . On this episode, the fight for gay rights before Stonewall. Gay people were not powerful enough politically to prevent the clampdown and so you had a series of escalating skirmishes in 1969. Also, through this fight, the "LGBT" was born. [7] In 1989, it won the Festival's Plate at the Torino International Gay & Lesbian Film Festival. Lucian Truscott, IV, Reporter,The Village Voice:The mob raised its hand and said "Oh, we'll volunteer," you know, "We'll set up some gay bars and serve over-priced, watered-down drinks to you guys." But we couldn't hold out very long. Before Stonewall pries open the closet door, setting free dramatic stories from the early 1900's onwards of public and private existence as experienced by LGBT Americans. Charles Harris, Transcriptions Homosexuality was a dishonorable discharge in those days, and you couldn't get a job afterwards. And the harder she fought, the more the cops were beating her up and the madder the crowd got. Ed Koch, Councilman, New York City:There were complaints from people who objected to the wrongful behavior of some gays who would have sex on the street. They raided the Checkerboard, which was a very popular gay bar, a week before the Stonewall. This, to a homosexual, is no choice at all. Joe DeCola Do you want them to lose all chance of a normal, happy, married life? And a whole bunch of people who were in the paddy wagon ran out. And it was those loudest people, the most vulnerable, the most likely to be arrested, were the ones that were doing the real fighting. Martha Babcock Mike Nuget But I had only stuck my head in once at the Stonewall. It premiered at the 1984 Toronto International Film Festival and was released in the United States on June 27, 1985. They would not always just arrest, they would many times use clubs and beat. And I knew that I was lesbian. We assembled on Christopher Street at 6th Avenue, to march. I mean does anyone know what that is? Danny Garvin:And the cops just charged them. I was wearing my mother's black and white cocktail dress that was empire-waisted. John O'Brien:They went for the head wounds, it wasn't just the back wounds and the leg wounds. The Gay Revolution: The Story of the Struggle, Queer (In)Justice: The Criminalization of LGBT People in the United States. It was a way to vent my anger at being repressed. People cheer while standing in front of The Stonewall Inn as the annual Gay Pride parade passes, Sunday, June 26, 2011 in New York. A New York Police officer grabs a man by the hair as another officer clubs a. [00:00:58] Well, this I mean, this is a part of my own history in this weird, inchoate sense. That never happened before. To celebrate the 30th anniversary of the Teddy Awards, the film was shown at the 66th Berlin International Film Festival in February 2016. Howard Smith, Reporter,The Village Voice:I had been in some gay bars either for a story or gay friends would say, "Oh we're going to go in for a drink there, come on in, are you too uptight to go in?" A New York Police officer grabs a man by the hair as another officer clubs a man during a confrontation in Greenwich Village after a Gay Power march in New York. Martin Boyce:It was thrilling. It won the Best Film Award at the Houston International Film Festival, Best Documentary Feature at Filmex, First Place at the National Educational Film Festival, and Honorable Mention at the Global Village Documentary Festival. And so we had to create these spaces, mostly in the trucks. Doric Wilson But, that's when we knew, we were ourselves for the first time. Jerry Hoose:I remember I was in a paddy wagon one time on the way to jail, we were all locked up together on a chain in the paddy wagon and the paddy wagon stopped for a red light or something and one of the queens said "Oh, this is my stop." This 1955 educational film warns of homosexuality, calling it "a sickness of the mind.". Ed Koch, Councilman, New York City:Yes, entrapment did exist, particularly in the subway system, in the bathrooms. Before Stonewall 1984 Unrated 1 h 27 m IMDb RATING 7.5 /10 1.1K YOUR RATING Rate Play trailer 2:21 1 Video 7 Photos Documentary History The history of the Gay and Lesbian community before the Stonewall riots began the major gay rights movement. This is one thing that if you don't get caught by us, you'll be caught by yourself. But I gave it up about, oh I forget, some years ago, over four years ago. hide caption. Documentary | Stonewall Forever And there was like this tension in the air and it just like built and built. Before Stonewall : Throughline : NPR BEFORE STONEWALL - Alliance of Women Film Journalists And we all relaxed. Except for the few mob-owned bars that allowed some socializing, it was basically for verboten. Sign up for the American Experience newsletter! All of this stuff was just erupting like a -- as far as they were considered, like a gigantic boil on the butt of America. It meant nothing to us. Available on Prime Video, Tubi TV, iTunes. Why 'Before Stonewall' Was Such a Hard Movie to Make - The Atlantic We knew that this was a moment that we didn't want to let slip past, because it was something that we could use to bring more of the groups together. The scenes were photographed with telescopic lenses. Franco Sacchi, Additional Animation and Effects In a spontaneous show of support and frustration, the citys gay community rioted for three nights in the streets, an event that is considered the birth of the modern Gay Rights Movement. Some of the pre-Stonewall uprisings included: Black Cat Raid, Los Angeles, California, 1967 Black Night Brawl, Milwaukee, Wisconsin, August 5, 1961. Slate:In 1969, homosexual acts were illegal in every state except Illinois. Detective John Sorenson, Dade County Morals & Juvenile Squad (Archival):There may be some in this auditorium. Tires were slashed on police cars and it just went on all night long. Martha Shelley And the Village has a lot of people with children and they were offended. Raymond Castro:Society expected you to, you know, grow up, get married, have kids, which is what a lot of people did to satisfy their parents. What finally made sense to me was the first time I kissed a woman and I thought, "Oh, this is what it's about." A sickness that was not visible like smallpox, but no less dangerous and contagious. Danny Garvin:With Waverly Street coming in there, West Fourth coming in there, Seventh Avenue coming in there, Christopher Street coming in there, there was no way to contain us. And, you know,The Village Voiceat that point started using the word "gay.". Susan Liberti June 21, 2019 1:29 PM EDT. WGBH Educational Foundation Doric Wilson:In those days, the idea of walking in daylight, with a sign saying, "I'm a faggot," was horren--, nobody, nobody was ready to do that. The film combined personal interviews, snapshots and home movies, together with historical footage. A person marching in a gay rights parade along New York's Fifth Avenue on July 7th, 1979. This produced an enormous amount of anger within the lesbian and gay community in New York City and in other parts of America. Her most recent film, Bones of Contention, premiered in the 2016 Berlin International The term like "authority figures" wasn't used back then, there was just "Lily Law," "Patty Pig," "Betty Badge." Amber Hall They would bang on the trucks. And I think it's both the alienation, also the oppression that people suffered. American Airlines You knew you could ruin them for life. Howard Smith, Reporter,The Village Voice:I had a column inThe Village Voicethat ran from '66 all the way through '84. The idea was to be there first. Martin Boyce:The day after the first riot, when it was all over, and I remember sitting, sun was soon to come, and I was sitting on the stoop, and I was exhausted and I looked at that street, it was dark enough to allow the street lamps to pick up the glitter of all the broken glass, and all the debris, and all the different colored cloth, that was in different places. Tommy Lanigan-Schmidt:As much as I don't like to say it, there's a place for violence. Doric Wilson:When I was very young, one of the terms for gay people was twilight people, meaning that we never came out until twilight, 'til it got dark. Martin Boyce:I heard about the trucks, which to me was fascinated me, you know, it had an imagination thing that was like Marseilles, how can it only be a few blocks away? I mean I'm talking like sardines. Lynn and Louis Wolfson II Florida Moving Image Archives The Stonewall had reopened. That's it. The police weren't letting us dance. Urban Stages I said, "I can go in with you?" The only faces you will see are those of the arresting officers. Before Stonewall (1984) - Plot Summary - IMDb Audience Member (Archival):I was wondering if you think that there are any quote "happy homosexuals" for whom homosexuality would be, in a way, their best adjustment in life? Jeremiah Hawkins It was as if they were identifying a thing. That's what happened on June 28, but as people were released, the night took an unusual turn when protesters and police clashed. John O'Brien:All of a sudden, the police faced something they had never seen before. Then during lunch, Ralph showed him some pornographic pictures. David Carter Narrator (Archival):We arrested homosexuals who committed their lewd acts in public places. Few photographs of the raid and the riots that followed exist. The severity of the punishment varies from state to state. Clever. ", Martin Boyce:People in the neighborhood, the most unlikely people were starting to support it. Martha Shelley:Before Stonewall, the homophile movement was essentially the Mattachine Society and Daughters of Bilitis and all of these other little gay organizations, some of which were just two people and a mimeograph machine. You know. This was the first time I could actually sense, not only see them fearful, I could sense them fearful. There was all these drags queens and these crazy people and everybody was carrying on. In the sexual area, in psychology, psychiatry. Richard Enman (Archival):Present laws give the adult homosexual only the choice of being, to simplify the matter, heterosexual and legal or homosexual and illegal. It said the most dreadful things, it said nothing about being a person. Narrator (Archival):This involves showing the gay man pictures of nude males and shocking him with a strong electric current. Katrina Heilbroner Martin Boyce:And then more police came, and it didn't stop. Vanessa Ezersky The Underground Lounge John O'Brien:We had no idea we were gonna finish the march. Gay people were told we didn't have any of that. Eric Marcus, Writer:The Mattachine Society was the first gay rights organization, and they literally met in a space with the blinds drawn. Fred Sargeant:When it was clear that things were definitely over for the evening, we decided we needed to do something more. Fred Sargeant:Three articles of clothing had to be of your gender or you would be in violation of that law. People that were involved in it like me referred to it as "The First Run." Ed Koch, Councilman, New York City:Gay rights, like the rights of blacks, were constantly under attack and while blacks were protected by constitutional amendments coming out of the Civil War, gays were not protected by law and certainly not the Constitution. Brief Summary Of The Documentary 'Before Stonewall' | Bartleby

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