gay rights

Cultural

The movement for civil rights for homosexuals. It originated after a police raid on a gay bar in New York City in 1969, which triggered a riot and launched the grassroots reform movement seeking to end social and legal discrimination against gays. (See Stonewall Riot.)

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

Reiner campaigned for early childhood education and health care, as well as gay rights.

From BBC • Dec. 15, 2025

An alcove devoted to gay rights displays an early version of the rainbow flag, campaign and protest buttons, and a ceiling fragment from the Stonewall Inn, where a 1969 uprising launched the gay liberation movement.

From The Wall Street Journal • Oct. 16, 2025

He has appeased both sides of the gay rights conversation by presenting himself as neither a reformer nor a reactionary, de-emphasizing the issue overall.

From Slate • Oct. 2, 2025

In June, he ordered the Navy to rename one its ships, which bore the name of an assassinated gay rights activist and Navy veteran, Harvey Milk.

From Salon • Sep. 25, 2025

Black power groups like the Black Panthers -- and later gay rights groups like the Pink Panthers, too.

From Little Brother by Doctorow, Cory

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023