The Vanguard Youth encouraged the and supported the events that led to the Compton’s Cafeteria Riot. The article below, written by the Rev. Raymond “Ray” Broshears, is one of the only documents about the events at Compton’s Cafeteria. The Rev. Ray Broshears was a very controversial individual who was often at odds with and in public disputes with others in the LGBTQIA+ community. A prolific writer, Rev. Ray Broshears also wrote a number of articles claiming that he was at the center of San Francisco’s most important LGBTQIA+ moments in history. From a historical perspective it is hard to tell which facts in the Rev. Ray Broshears’ stories are true. The article below is presented as storytelling from the unique perspective of the Rev. Ray Broshears.
Bay Area Reporter, Volume 6, Number 1, 8 January 1976. Courtesy of the Internet Archive.
Bay Area Reporter, Volume 6, Number 1, 8 January 1976. Courtesy of the Internet Archive.
Historian Susan Stryker looked into the Rev. Ray Broshears’ story, speaking to those in the trans community who were living in San Francisco around the same time and one individual who was at Compton’s during the uprising. These oral history conversations led Susan Stryker to conclude that the work of the Glide pastors and interns with the Vanguard youth was the likely catalyst for the Compton’s Cafeteria Riot. Susan Stryker’s Emmy Award winning documentary, Screaming Queens, chronicles this important history.
2019 Apology at Glide from SFPD Chief William Scott
In 2019, after community reconciliation work and learning, lead by Commander Teresa Ewins and Community Chaplain Coordinator Megan Rohrer (who currently works at Glide Church as the Senior Church Communications Specialist), SFPD Chief William Scott came to Glide to apologize for the events that took place at California Hall and the Compton’s Cafeteria Riot. The apology was followed by a community listening session at Glide and a subsequent listening sessions throughout San Francisco’s LGBTQ community.
If this exhibit has inspired you to learn more about Glide Pride, you can connect here.