46th Anniversaryof Compton Cafeteria Riot March & Rally
5:oopm - August 20, 2012 - San Francisco, California
Meet at City Hall at 5:00pm on the Polk St. side to march,
or join us at 5:30pm at the corner ofTurk & Taylor.
via the Facebook Event Page:
Join in celebrating the legacy of LGBTQ homeless youth in San Francisco's Tenderloin district.
March from City Hall to Gene Comptons' Cafeteria (former site) on the corner of Turk and Taylor, where we will have speakers (more to be revealed as we get closer to the event), refreshments and use sidewalk chalk to leave remembrances on the sidewalk.
The Compton's Cafeteria Riot was spurred by a group of transgender women and the Vangaurd youth (queer street hustlers). The contemporary group of LGBTQ homeless youth known as Otro Vanguard will participate in this event with some of the heroes of the movement including Felicia Flames who was featured in the Screaming Queens documentary.
Clergy are invited to wear collars or a sign of their faith.
Confirmed speakers include: Felicia Flames, Pastor Megan Rohrer, Supervisor Scott Wiener and Trans Law Center Executive Director Masen Davis.
While most GLBTQ historians cite the
Stonewall riots in 1969 as the start of the gay liberation struggle,
in 1995 a new slice of LGBTQ history was brought to light by
transgender historian Susan Stryker while she was researching her now
best-selling book, “Gay by the Bay.” Stryker discovered an
article in the 1972 Gay Pride program about a riot that took place in San Francisco at Gene Compton's Cafeteria in August of
1966.
Tired of the constant harassment by the
SFPD, the drag queens refused to leave the cafeteria and rioted
against the police. This event marks the first time in history where LGBTQ people fought back against the police and took a stand for themselves.
Susan Stryker, a transgender
historian, author, professor, and filmmaker co-directed the 2005 documentary "Screaming Queens: The Riot at Compton's Cafeteria" which profiles these courageous women.
There are also several clips from the film available on YouTube:
You can watch the first 24 minutes of the film here:
There are also several clips from the film available on YouTube:
