Date of Award
Spring 2021
Degree Name
Bachelor of Arts
Department
Historical & Political Studies; College of Arts & Sciences
First Advisor
Angela Kachuyevski
Abstract
The LGBT Rights Movement has been one of the most influential social movements in recent decades. The aim of this paper is to determine the extent to which the LGBT rights movement has affected U.S. law and policy. In order to study this, I employ a process tracing method to study the movement as a whole over the past few decades from Stonewall to the present. I begin with the Stonewall Riots of 1969 as they are largely considered to be the start of the modern LGBT rights movement. My analysis focuses on the power and the importance of the movement, with power defined as the ability to create desired effects in public policy and the ability to influence public opinion and importance defined as recognition of individual or group actors in bringing about change in public policy and public opinion and evidence of direct links between the movement and policy changes In the end, I conclude that the movement is both powerful, in terms of bringing about positive changes in law and policy for LGBT people, and it is an important part in bringing about these changes.
Recommended Citation
Mericle, Jake, "Stonewall to the Present: An Analysis of the LGBT Rights Movement and U.S. Public Policy" (2021). Capstone Showcase. 1.
https://scholarworks.arcadia.edu/showcase/2021/pgl/1
Included in
Civil Rights and Discrimination Commons, Public Policy Commons, Sexuality and the Law Commons
Stonewall to the Present: An Analysis of the LGBT Rights Movement and U.S. Public Policy
The LGBT Rights Movement has been one of the most influential social movements in recent decades. The aim of this paper is to determine the extent to which the LGBT rights movement has affected U.S. law and policy. In order to study this, I employ a process tracing method to study the movement as a whole over the past few decades from Stonewall to the present. I begin with the Stonewall Riots of 1969 as they are largely considered to be the start of the modern LGBT rights movement. My analysis focuses on the power and the importance of the movement, with power defined as the ability to create desired effects in public policy and the ability to influence public opinion and importance defined as recognition of individual or group actors in bringing about change in public policy and public opinion and evidence of direct links between the movement and policy changes In the end, I conclude that the movement is both powerful, in terms of bringing about positive changes in law and policy for LGBT people, and it is an important part in bringing about these changes.