David Carter, The Gay Historian Who Wrote The ‘Definitive History’ Of The Stonewall Uprising, Has Died Of A Heart Attack Aged 67

David Carter, the gay historian who authored the “definitive history” of the Stonewall Uprising, has died from a heart attack at the age of 67.

Carter died May 1 in his New York apartment, according to the Washington Blade.

His brother, Bill, told local media that doctors believed Carter had died of a heart attack.

The gay historian wrote Stonewall: The Riots That Sparked the Gay Revolution, which was published in 2004 and cemented Carter as the leading expert on the riots outside New York’s Stonewall Inn in June 1969.

The Stonewall Uprising is commonly credited as being the spark that ignited the modern-day gay-rights movement, which initially focused on gay men and lesbians before becoming inclusive of bisexual and transgender people.

Carter’s book formed for the basis for the PBS film Stonewall Uprising, which won a Peabody Award, and he also played a critical role in getting the Stonewall Inn and surrounding streets designated as a national monument and historic landmark.

In 2009, Carter said: “The riots are important only because they gave birth to the gay liberation movement, just as the fall of the Bastille is only important because it led to the French Revolution.”