Compton’s Cafeteria Riot

Alright, let’s talk about the Compton’s Cafeteria riot, which took place in August of 1966 in San Francisco. At the time, transgender people were not welcome in gay bars because the police were able to use the presence of cross-dressing individuals as probable cause in order to raid a bar — and also because, let’s face it, there is *still* transphobia in the LGBTQ+ community. So instead of going to gay bars, the transgender community of San Francisco frequented one of Gene Compton’s Cafeterias, this one located at 101 Taylor Street. (The cafeteria there closed its doors in 1972.)

Before the riot, the police began to crack down on the presence of transgender people at the cafeteria. In response, the transgender community — as well as a lesbian organization called the Street Orphans (essentially a lesbian street gang) and a gay youth group called the Vanguard — put together a picket outside of Compton’s Cafeteria. This was possibly the first organized protest about the violence directed towards transgender people by the police.

On the first night of the picket, the restaurant employees called the police as the protesters apparently had become loud and disruptive. The police arrived and attempted to arrest one of the transgender women protesting. She threw her coffee in his face. This was all it took — the peaceful protest instantly transformed into a riot. Although we as a community had moved past using donuts as weapons (as in the Cooper’s Donuts riot), we were not above using dishes and furniture. The plate glass windows of the restaurant were smashed, and the fighting moved into the street. A police car had all of its windows smashed, and a nearby newsstand was set on fire.

Although the riot dispersed, Compton’s Cafeteria refused to allow transgender people into the restaurant anymore. This led to another picket and their brand new windows being smashed again. Ultimately, the restaurant decided that it would be better to just close up shop at midnight instead of being open at all hours and have to refuse service to anyone. Probably a smart move if they, y’know, wanted to have glass windows.

The date in August of the riot is unclear — the police records have apparently been lost and the entire event was wholly ignored by even the local media. Despite not knowing the exact date of the riot, a historical marker was placed at the location on June 22, 2006.

(Adapted from this Facebook post.)