June is Gay & Lesbian Pride Month: Stonewall Riots 40 Years Later

Police raids on gay bars were routine in the 1960s, but officers quickly lost control of the situation at the Stonewall Inn, and attracted a crowd that was incited to riot. Tensions between New York City police and gay residents of Greenwich Village erupted into more protests the next evening, and again several nights later. Within weeks, Village residents quickly organized into activist groups to concentrate efforts on establishing places for gays and lesbians to be open about their sexual orientation without fear of being arrested.

After the Stonewall riots, gays and lesbians in New York City faced gender, class, and generational obstacles to becoming a cohesive community. Within six months, two gay activist organizations were formed in New York, concentrating on confrontational tactics, and three newspapers were established to promote rights for gays and lesbians. Within a few years, gay rights organizations were founded across the U.S. and the world. On June 28, 1970, the first Gay Pride marches took place in Los Angeles and New York commemorating the anniversary of the riots. Similar marches were organized in other cities; today Gay Pride events are held annually throughout the world toward the end of June to mark the Stonewall riots.[5]

Since 2000, June has been officially named Gay & Lesbian Pride Month. This month was chosen to commemorate the Stonewall riots in 1969 in New York. This special month is used to highlight the history of the Gay Rights Movement as well as to celebrate the diversity of sexual orientation. This is also a time to learn more about HIV and AIDS, although we know that this disease affects many more people across the world, and not exclusively gay men.

Although Gay & Lesbian Pride Events occur all around the country throughout the entire year, this month I will be featuring those events in and around Los Angeles to help you celebrate. In this time when Proposition 8 is upheld in the California Supreme Court, we must show our respect and support for those who cannot claim to have equal rights under the current constitution. Whether you identify as lesbian, gay, bi, straight, or anything in between, enjoy the sexual diversity of Los Angeles and attend an event this month.