That twist being that the Village Voice’s reporter for the riots that made gay rights history was the son of one of America’s top World War II generals, and himself just graduated from West Point, stringing for the Voice while on summer leave before heading to Fort Benning.
Now, Lucian Truscott IV gives a very good thumbnail sketch of what happened at Stonewall — and why, including the Mafia backdrop, albeit one forced on the Stonewall by the state of New York, 40 long years ago.
If you’re not familiar with the Stonewall story (I’m about five years too young, myself, to not only have heard about it, but to have understood anything about it at the time) Truscott’s recollection is a great starting point.
Part of why the riot broke out is that a special police unit was raiding the Stonewall for selling liquor without a license. Why?
The regular beat unit in the area was taking shakedown money from the gay bars. For more on that, from a retired Connecticut cop who was also there — as a patron — in 1969, read this.
And, that said, I’m not sure I can picture being a gay cop nearly 40 years ago.
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