For the first time, NYC’s gay citizens came together to fight, and for many of them there was no turning back.
Over three days windows were smashed, fires set, protesters beaten, cops attacked, and tear gas ignited on the streets of Greenwich Village. A riot broke out as gays, lesbians, and drag queens gave vent to their rage over perpetual harassment. When the officers beat them, the growing crowd became incensed and overwhelmed the NYPD. This time, rather than meekly submitting to arrest, many of the men, women and drag queens fought the police while being forced into paddy wagons.
Then on June 28, 1969, a crowd gathered in Sheridan Square to watch a routine raid of a popular gay bar, The Stonewall Inn. Gay men and lesbians had to submissively hide or risk getting trapped by a system designed to prosecute them. According to the NY State Liquor Authority, one known homosexual at a licensed premises made it “disorderly,” and drag queens were in violation of a bizarre 1845 statute that made it a crime to masquerade in NY State. The few gay bars were the center of queer social life, but were constantly raided by the NYPD. Given this hostile environment, gays were driven to meet in illicit places, like restrooms, parks, and piers (seen as further evidence of their depravity).
Offenders’ names and home addresses were often printed in newspapers, leading to public humiliation and loss of livelihood. They were pursued and arrested by the NYPD (often via entrapment), and charged with solicitation, “lewd and immoral behavior,” or simply loitering. Gays were blackmailed and bashed by other men. While NYC had a sizable gay population, it was no safe haven. Many gays and lesbians fled to NYC, longing for community and safety. They were frequently institutionalized and subjected to shock treatment, sterilization, and even lobotomies. Gays were reviled, considered “sexual psychopaths” and insidious threats to the status quo. The first Gay Pride March was held in NYC in 1970: a time and place that were hostile to gays and lesbians. But in researching the Pride March, my thinking has shifted. I didn’t feel part of that community, or believe I would be welcomed at their party. I believed it was less about pride than pageant – swaggering leather queens, in-your-face drag queens, and, of course, the exhibitionist A-gays, bumping and grinding for the adoration of fellow Adonises. In three decades in NYC, I’ve never marched and seldom gone to watch. The Stonewall Inn is still there, now under different owners.I’ve long been ambivalent about the Gay Pride March. New York City's gay pride parades began in 1970 to commemorate the 1969 Stonewall uprising, which started after a police raid on a Manhattan gay bar. It's unclear what charges they will face. Still, there was police presence throughout and the NYPD says it arrested four people late Sunday night at Washington Square Park. The liberation march event does not allow police or corporate participation. "There are all different ways that families are made up, so it’s really awesome to be able to share this experience with them today.”įor people looking to march for LGBTQ rights, the Reclaim Pride Coalition held its third Queer Liberation March from Bryant Park to the Stonewall National Monument and into Washington Square Park. “It’s such an important thing for them to see that they have two dads and that there are other people that have two moms, two dads, single dads, single moms," Gannon told WCBS Radio.
Sean Gannon from Maplewood, New Jersey, attended with his husband and two 3-year-old sons. Fireworks, music and food were prepared for Pier 45 in Hudson River Park. On a day marked with high temperatures and brilliant sunshine, throngs gathered around the city, at PrideFest, a street fair with vendors, food and entertainment in Manhattan at Herald Square where a dance party was planned, and at Washington Square Park, where videos posted online showed a raucous party in progress. Another added, "It shouldn't be just one weekend, it should be pride all the time." "The parade is fun, but to me it's not about the parade," one New Yorker said. A look back at the origins of the Gay Pride parade.ĭespite the changes to Pride for a second consecutive year, it was clear by the turnout Friday night that New Yorkers were ready to celebrate again.