Be gay do crime origin

Be Gay Do Crime is a catchphrase and protest slogan used by activists, members and allies of the LGBTQIA+ community, promoting freedom from discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation or being non-cisgender.

Ah, yes: “Be Gay, Do Crimes,” the rallying cry of a generation. But how did this slogan (and sentiment) come to be? The history is weirder (and shorter!) than you might expect. In September of , Instagram user @absentobject posted a photo of some graffiti they’d seen in France.

Far as I know, it dates back to an old comic in a cartoon that says "be gay, do crime" and I know no other context other than it was from the time way back when, when gay was often used to describe happiness.

The slogan "Be gay, do crime" is an anti-capitalistic and anti-authoritarian statement, implying that crime and incivility may be necessary to earn equal rights given the criminalization of homosexuality around the world and that the Stonewall uprising was a riot.