1993: The Hawaii Supreme Court found the state’s denial of marriage licenses to same-sex couples to be discriminatory, which triggered the enactment of the federal Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA), a federal law that defined marriage as between one man and one woman and allowed states not to recognize same-sex marriage.
military instituted its “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” policy, prohibiting prospective and current service members from being questioned about their sexual orientation. state to ban discrimination against people who are gay, lesbian, or bisexual. 1973: The American Psychiatric Association officially declassified homosexuality as a mental illness.In the more than 50 years since Stonewall, meaningful victories have been achieved in the quest to secure equality: One year later, on June 28, 1970, what would be known as our nation’s first Pride march was held to commemorate the events at Stonewall, eventually becoming the month of LGBTQIA+ Pride that Americans now celebrate every June.
Later that same day, thousands of demonstrators gathered outside the Stonewall Inn, sparking a series of passionate protests, known as the Stonewall Uprising, against the abuse and mistreatment of gay communities over the following days. News of the resistance to the raid spread quickly throughout the city. The officers on the scene then barricaded themselves inside the bar, as the mob outside grew in size and intensity. Johnson and Sylvia Rivera, had grown tired of being harassed and fought back in response, drawing a large crowd of protesters outside the bar, as police were using excessive force to arrest people for the then-crime of being gay, trans, or cross-dressing. While police raids on gay spaces were common during this era, this raid was unique: the patrons of the bar, led by trans women Marsha P.
On the early morning of June 28, 1969, several hours before the crack of dawn, NYPD officers dressed in street clothes raided the Stonewall Inn, a gay bar in Greenwich Village. However, this space is relatively new-and the story of how Pride came to be emphasizes just how far we’ve come on the extensive road to creating a truly equal society. Pride Month provides a time and space for our LGBTQIA+ friends and neighbors to be proudly and authentically themselves. Over the last several decades, the LGBTQIA+ rights movement has made incredible progress in the United States and around the world-in-part thanks to the visibility, awareness, and political activism that occurs annually during this month of Pride across our nation.