Before the mid-20th century, underground bars and cafes served as the only safe havens for the entire spectrum of queer people. The turning point of the modern movement—the 1969 Stonewall Riots in New York City—was catalyzed largely by transgender women of colour, drag queens, and butch lesbians. Figures like Marsha P. Johnson and Sylvia Rivera fought against police brutality, demanding dignity not just for gay men and lesbians, but for the street queens and homeless trans youth who were often rejected by mainstream society. SGE and Early Organizing
You cannot write about the transgender community without addressing the brutal arithmetic of intersectionality.
Pride festivals, the most public displays of LGBTQ identity, saw dramatic increases in threats and violence. There were 268 anti-LGBTQ incidents in June 2025 alone—a nearly 400 percent increase from just 54 incidents in June 2022, when GLAAD first began collecting data.
Before the mid-20th century, underground bars and cafes served as the only safe havens for the entire spectrum of queer people. The turning point of the modern movement—the 1969 Stonewall Riots in New York City—was catalyzed largely by transgender women of colour, drag queens, and butch lesbians. Figures like Marsha P. Johnson and Sylvia Rivera fought against police brutality, demanding dignity not just for gay men and lesbians, but for the street queens and homeless trans youth who were often rejected by mainstream society. SGE and Early Organizing
You cannot write about the transgender community without addressing the brutal arithmetic of intersectionality.
Pride festivals, the most public displays of LGBTQ identity, saw dramatic increases in threats and violence. There were 268 anti-LGBTQ incidents in June 2025 alone—a nearly 400 percent increase from just 54 incidents in June 2022, when GLAAD first began collecting data.