1981 Stonewall Week poster

This poster advertises Stonewall Week, a week of activism, protest and celebration by Sydney's LGBTQIA+ community. It was printed in 1981, just three years after 53 people were arrested, and some were assaulted, by police for participating in Sydney's first Mardi Gras. Sydney's first Mardi Gras was held to mark the 9th anniversary of the Stonewall riots in New York, one of the most important milestones in the history of LGBTQIA+ activism.

In the early hours of 28 June 1969, a small group of plainclothes police officers raided the Stonewall Inn, a gay bar in New York City. The police intended to arrest patrons, but a riot broke out among customers. This protest against police harassment grew and continued in the neighbourhood over several nights. At the time, Illinois was the only US state to have repealed its sodomy laws – a decade later, 18 states had done so.

Since 1970, the anniversary of the Stonewall riots has been the traditional day for gay pride parades and activities around the world, including in Australia. This originally included Sydney's Mardi Gras, but in 1981 it was moved to February to take advantage of warmer weather and attract tourism. However, Stonewall Week activities have remained popular events for LGBTQIA+ people and their supporters.

When this poster was printed, homosexuality was still a criminal offence in New South Wales. An attempt to change the law had been thwarted in 1981 by conservatives in both the Labor government and the Coalition, and a similar attempt also failed later that year. In 1984, the Crimes (Amendment) Act passed the state parliament, decriminalising homosexuality but retaining unequal age of consent laws for gay men – these laws were eventually equalised in 2003. In 2014 the convictions of those tried for sodomy were expunged, and on the 40th anniversary of legalisation in 2024, the state issued a formal apology to those who had been persecuted for their sexuality.