Gay and lesbian theory begins in a social movement. The Stonewall Riots of 1969 maybe described as the point of origin of the gay liberation movement.

A re-reading of classic authors like Walt Whitman and nineteenth century ones like Edward Carpenter, the rise of overtly homosexual pop stars (Jasper Johns, Robert Rauschenberg, Andy Warhol), Hollywood stars (Rock Hudson), the poetry of W.H. Auden, the fiction of E.M. Forster, the plays of John Osborne (especially A Patriot for Me) in the 1950s and 60s suggested an alternate to heterosexuality. The writing of Audre Lorde, Gloria Anzaldua, James Baldwin and Cherrie Moraga became significant texts.