Were the '90s more socially progressive than the 2000s?

Guys, I think we need to remember any argument that the ‘90s were more progressive than the ‘00s has to come with the following big-ass asterisks:

1. In the US, it was still illegal to BE gay in private in the safety of your own home in certain US states until Lawrence v. Texas in 2003.

2. The year 1992 brought us Rodney King and the race riots due to shocking police brutality. The only reason it seems to be cropping up “again” in the last decade is because these incidents are more easily publicized thanks to smartphones and policy bodycams.

All I’m going to say is Lawrence v Texas was the case caption used because it was a criminal court case at the local level. Lawrence was going to be thrown in prison.

Oh yeah, you actually bring up an excellent point. President Bill Clinton, a Democrat, ratified the Defense of Marriage Act (1996), enabling US states to ban same-sex marriage: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Defense_of_Marriage_Act

Not adjudged unconstitutional until 2013. I remember sitting in a law school class lecture as the opinion invalidating the law was handed down.

I do see the 1990s somewhat as a netural decade. The 2000s (save for the 2008-2009) was a conserative time period. As much as I love the early 2000s, I can see why not a lot of people don't love it as much. The 2000s mainly the early 2000s was such a judgemental time. S#ut-Shaming was everywhere. From Britney to X-Tina, JLO, Beyonce, Janet, Paris, etc.. Not saying that S#ut Shamming don't exist anymore, it's not as bad as the early 00s.  Diane Sawyer of ABC News did a interview with Britney Spears in 2003. Where she was basically making Britney feel like crap because she was not only confident in herself but also her sexuality. Kept talking about her sex life, Diane made Britney cried in front of national TV.  Nowadays, if a interviewer did that, they will get a lot of backlash. I found a video that talked about this.



There's this show called America's Next Top Model with Tyra Banks. The show premiered in 2003 and it had a lot problematic crap during the show. You would not believe how some part even got approval. This was mainly the 2000s some of the 2010s.


The Dixie Chicks was banned because the frontwoman Natalie Maines had a distaste for President Bush Jr and his administration/Iraq War. Ahead of its time if you ask me.


Last but not least, the excessive amount of homophobia in the early 00s. I could not imagined coming out during that time without getting your life threatened. Watching some of the movies and shows of that period seem like the sign of the time. I watched the O.C last year where one of the characters finds out that their father was on the DL. The kids made fun of him at his school because of that. And last night, I watched Degrassi: The Next Generation Season 3 where the character named Marco came out as gay. Everybody was either disappointing in him or angry at him for coming out, Marco got attacked by a group of men for that. The only person that accepted him was Jimmy(also better known as Drake). 

 Now while I like the 2000s for pop culture and the technology for its time, the social values during that time was problematic and has not age well.

I get the impression bullying was really bad in the 90’s. Idk if it’s because of how TV shows and movies depict 90’s bullies, but I’ve heard comments before describing how bullying was bad in the 90’s. If something was already not progressive in the 00’s I assume it wasn’t much better in the 90’s, considering it was the previous decade. There was very likely much more Muslim/Arab phobia in the 00’s than the 90’s because of 9/11 though.

In some ways, yes, but in others, no.
The '00s did have the first instances of gay marriage being legalized, emo culture and genderbending being mainstream, the "Masculine Girl, Feminine Boy" trope in multiple cartoons and sitcoms, as well as the election of the first black president in the US. Not only that, but Barack Obama actually won his elections by a majority, while Bill Clinton won his elections by a plurality. (Ross Perot stole votes from Bush and Dole)

However, all the points everyone has made on this board of the '90s being the more progressive decade are still most certainly valid.

Both decades were certainly far more progressive than the '80s though, which was arguably the most socially regressive decade following the '50s.
The '60s and '70s were decades of cultural revolution, with The Beatles, the Hippie Movement, David Bowie with his genderbending fashion style, as well as heavy influences of homosexual culture within the Disco and even the Heavy Metal genres. Not saying those decades were truly progressive, far from it in fact, but at least the facets of counterculture within those decades helped break a mold a bit.
The '80s however, with the Reagan Revolution and the pop cultural obsession with "macho-manliness" (including in hair metal), plus with the AIDS pandemic going on and homosexuality being scapegoated for it, the '80s were socially backwards and regressive as fuck. Then the '90s came with the Grunge Movement, the World Health Organization de-listing homosexuality as a disease, and with more cartoons and sitcoms portraying the "Masculine Girl, Feminine Boy" trope, plus with the third-wave feminist movement as well. The '00s saw both a continuation of that progressive trend, but also a lot of backlash against it as well.

Dressing effeminately is one thing; try BEING gay at the time. Also music was the realm of the counterculture, so it makes sense they would not seem conservative.