Honoring & Uplifting LGBTQ+ Lives on Stonewall’s Anniversary

June 20th 2020

A collaboration by the Oregon Food Bank LGBTQ+ Affinity Group

On June 28th, 1969, an historic act of resistance by the LGBTQ+ community began. The Stonewall Riots began in New York City’s Greenwich Village after police raided The Stonewall Inn. When officers became violent after demanding “sex verification” checks on trans women, a protest broke out, with trans women of color including Marsha P. Johnson and Sylvia Rivera at the forefront. The resulting riots lasted three days, sparking a national movement to end the never-ending police misconduct committed against LGBTQ+ people and establish safe spaces for community members to gather. Pride Month as we know it would not exist without the efforts of Black trans activists throughout this period, acting in solidarity against police harassment and violence.

The spirit of LGBTQ+ Pride lives on today, visible in our community’s resilience and the fight for equity and acceptance for all. At this pivotal moment in our country’s history, this fight has never been more vital — especially given the ongoing wave of violence against Black Transgender people. Transgender people of color are disproportionately affected by violence, with nearly three out of four lethal anti-LGBTQ+ hate crimes committed against trans women and girls. (National Coalition of Anti-Violence Programs, 2013)

In addition to being disproportionately affected by violence and police brutality, LGBTQ+ people are hard hit by hunger, experiencing food insecurity at more than double the national average rate. Right now, one in four LGBTQ+ adults report not having enough money to feed themselves or their families at some point in the past year — with LGBTQ+ people of color twice as likely to experience hunger.

At Oregon Food Bank, we believe that food, health and well-being are human rights for all. Delivering on our mission to end hunger requires that we do all we can to help everyone access nutritious food today; and that we work to eliminate systemic inequities that drive hunger and poverty. We celebrate LGBTQ+ Pride and honor Marsha P. Johnson, Sylvia Rivera and all who fought in the Stonewall Riots by supporting Black Lives Matter and investing in Black futures. And alongside a host of incredible community-led organizations, we are fighting to protect Black communities from violence by supporting the reallocation of police funding to critical social services.

We hope you’ll join us in supporting efforts to fight racism, heterosexism, anti-trans discrimination and other root causes of hunger in the United States: