Stonewall, a bit of history any self respecting gay individual and/or feminist should know, happened on this date 42 years ago. Slate.com has an excellent article on the history of the Stonewall. Click through to read about what happened in New York when people got tired and said "hell no...we're not going to take it any more." It was an historic occasion.
Forty two years minus four days later:
Stonewall is more than just a before and after marker, more than an event in the gay history books. It's a real place with a real appeal. On the night of June 24, 2011, a throng of first nervous and then jubilant customers gathered at the Stonewall to follow the New York State Senate's vote on same-sex marriage. It was Pride weekend, a drag parade was heading from Tompkins Square Park in the East Village to the Stonewall, and the neighborhood was already packed with revelers. As the senators announced their votes, and customers struggled to keep track, it seemed that a crowded, noisy bar wasn't the ideal location to monitor Senate business. But when the final tally was announced, and people realized that in 30 days, they, too, would finally have the right to marry, the Stonewall seemed the perfect place to be. A loudspeaker pumped gay anthems into Sheridan Square—Madonna's "Holiday," George Michael's "Faith"—while couples planned weddings, sought out husbands-to-be (one guy yelled: "I'm getting married! Now I just need a boyfriend"), and cheered on command whenever TV lights illuminated the street. Politics had returned to the bar for one night at least, and it was a glorious, festive celebration.
Tuesday, June 28, 2011
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