Garland meant a little something to us, as she did for many groups—“Somewhere Over the Rainbow”—but that was it. And, honestly, that song was wishful thinking, an anthem for the older generation.
There are several theories as to what contributed to Garland’s status as a gay icon. According to Richard Dyer, author of Heavenly Bodies: Film Stars and Society, reverence of Garland among gay men took on a new form in 1950, when she broke off her contract with MGM and forged a rejuvenated career off the back of the success of 1954’s A Star Is Born and her on-stage endeavors. Not only did her image “speak to different elements within male gay subcultures,” writes Dyer, but she came to represent “gay men’s resilience in the face of oppression,” stemming from the perception of her as a star who had been knocked down only to triumphantly rise back up again. A comment from one fan, included in Heavenly Bodies, says “her audience, we, the gay people, could identify with her…could relate to her in the problems she had on and off stage.”
Garland’s funeral in New York City has also been cited by many as a cause for the Stonewall Riots, which launched a new wave of LGBT activism. Thousands of fans turned out to pay their respects to Garland at her funeral on June 27, 1969. That night, the popular gay bar the Stonewall Inn was raided by police, as such establishments were commonly targeted during that era; but this time, the patrons fought back. The role that Garland’s funeral played in the Stonewall uprising has been debated for years: Several LGBTQ historians have said that there is a lack of evidence to connect the two events. However, others say that while her funeral may not have directly caused the uprising, the outpouring of grief at her passing heightened emotions among the community. “People who say that it trivializes [Stonewall], to say that it’s connected to Judy Garland, don’t understand how stars and other cultural objects can have tremendous meaning,” Petersen said on You Must Remember This.
