Stonewall
By 1969, the Stonewall Inn (now a national monument) was one of the most popular gay bars in New York City.Throughout the state, homosexuality was considered a criminal offense, and it would take over a decade of organizing before "same-sex relationships" were legalized in 1980 (New York v. Onofre). The criminalization of homosexuality led many gay establishments to operate sans liquor license, providing an open door for raids and police brutality.
Like many gay establishments at the time, the Stonewall Inn was owned by the mafia, and as long as they continued to make a profit, they cared very little what happened to their clientele. Because the owners were still making a profit, they simply adjusted to the raids, and were often tipped off about them ahead of time.
The Stonewall was raided on average once a month leading up to the raid on June 28, 1969 (Martin Duberman, Stonewall p. 187), and had been raided once already that same week. The Stonewall was also not the only bar in town being frequently raided. “… In the last three weeks five gay bars in the Village area that I know of have been hit by the police” (The Summer of Gay Power and the Village Voice Exposed, COME OUT, 1969). Police raids and harassment were a common occurrence across the U.S. during this time, and amid the growing political activism of the 1960s, LGBTQ+ people began to mobilize and fight back..
“Pride exists because of a woman. Pride exists because of a Black woman. Pride exists because of a Black trans woman. Pride exists because of a Black trans woman who was a sex worker. Pride exists because of a Black, bisexual trans woman who was a sex worker that threw a brick at a cop. Pride exists because of a Black, bisexual trans woman, who was a sex worker, that threw a brick at a cop and started a riot against the state. Don’t lose this month in rainbow capitalism and unabashed racism because of the privilege of being white while queer. If you aren’t supporting queer people of color, trans women, and queer sex workers, you aren’t celebrating pride, you are celebrating rainbow capitalism and police brutality. Her name was Marsha P. Johnson.”