The Struggle for Queer Liberation

I was two years old in 2003 when same-sex marriage was legalized in Ontario and four years old in 2005 when it was legalized across Canada. I'm lucky to have grown up throughout the ongoing queer liberation movement, surrounded by friends who celebrated queerness. But I’m constantly reminded that the struggle for queer liberation is far from over. It’s easy to become disillusioned while struggling for any form of justice, especially when it feels like little progress is being made. The rise of fascism and right wing, queerphobic nonsense surrounds us, and it’s hard not to be consumed by it. How do we keep fighting when we’re up against so much hate?

Something that’s helped me is reflecting on what we’ve won so far at times when things seemed hopeless. These wins remind us of what’s possible when we recognize our collective power to drive change, even in the face of oppression and overwhelming bigotry.

I was listening to an episode of Margaret Killjoy’s podcast “Cool People Who Did Cool Stuff” (which I would highly recommend – it’s free on iHeartRadio) which focused on the Stonewall Rebellion. Stonewall is one of the better-known direct actions in recent queer history, and it’s one that continues to inspire folks fighting for queer liberation. 

The Stonewall Inn in Greenwich Village, NYC, was a gay bar and a popular hangout spot for 2SLGBTQIA+ folks, especially the most heavily stigmatized folks in the community like QTBIPOC folks, sex workers, drag queens, poor and working-class queer folks, and trans folks. On June 27^th, 1969, cops raided Stonewall. Cops often raided gay bars to harass and arrest queer folks, and on this night, Stonewall patrons fought back. This was not the first time queer folks fought back against police raids, police brutality, and the criminalization of queerness, but Stonewall was unique in that the uprising lasted several days and sparked an increase in mobilization and direct action. Stonewall is an integral part of queer history, as it brought about a new era in the queer liberation movement. The first Gay Liberation Parade was held on the anniversary of the Stonewall Rebellion to commemorate the uprising, and this would eventually give rise to today’s Pride parades.

Down the street, at the Women’s House of Detention, women and trans men who were imprisoned also joined the Stonewall uprising (and something cool that I learned from Margaret’s podcast was that one of those women was Afeni Shakur, Tupac’s mom!). The struggle for liberation from carceral systems is important in queer history, and protesting the Women’s House of Detention is one of the initial reasons why the Gay Liberation Front was formed (Ryan 2019). The 2SLGBTQIA+ community continues to face injustice in prison systems (which already lack justice), including transphobia. 67% of imprisoned trans women in Canada are held in men’s prisons, and 95% of imprisoned trans men in Canada are held in women’s prisons (MacDonald et al. 2022). The interconnectedness of liberation struggles, including queer liberation and liberation from carceral systems, reminds us of the importance of intersectionality and solidarity across movements. There’s a famous quote from Dr. Lilla Watson: “If you have come here to help me you are wasting your time, but if you have come because your liberation is bound up with mine, then let us work together.”  

The Stonewall Rebellion is a testament to our collective power to drive change. We will continue to struggle until complete liberation, and we will win. 

References

MacDonald, S. F., Smeth, A., Cram, S., Garrel, S., Derkzen, D. (2022). Examination of Gender Diverse Offenders. Correctional Service of Canada. https://publications.gc.ca/collections/collection_2022/scc-csc/PS83-3-442-eng.pdf  

Ryan, H. (2019). The Queer History of the Women’s House of Detention. The Activist History Review. https://activisthistory.com/2019/05/31/the-queer-history-of-the-womens-house-of-detention/