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1969: Stonewall Uprising
NY Daily News Archive/Getty Images
In the early-morning hours of June 28, 1969, police raided the Stonewall Inn, a popular Greenwich Village nightclub, for the second time in a week — a common occurrence in an era when nearly all aspects of LGBTQ life were criminalized. That night, however, the crowd refused to disperse and patrons clashed with police as the confrontation swelled to include hundreds of demonstrators. Riots continued into the following week. The Stonewall uprising galvanized activists across the country and set into motion the modern LGBTQ movement — including pride.
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1970: First Pride Parades
Participants march through New York City for the second annual Christopher Street Gay Liberation Day, later called Gay Pride Day, in 1971.
Michael Ochs Archives/Getty Images
One year after Stonewall, people commemorated the uprising with marches in New York City, Chicago, San Francisco and Los Angeles. The phrase “gay pride” was also brand-new that year, coined by activists as a shorthand to unite the events planned as part of the fledgling movement. In 1971, pride went worldwide, with parades and demonstrations taking place in West Berlin, London, Paris and Stockholm.
