The events 50 years ago, at the Stonewall Inn in New York's Greenwich Village neighborhood of Manhattan, spread over two days as gay activists, drag queens, transgender persons and people tired of the constant raids on gay and queer establishments took a stand against police.
Early in the morning on Saturday, June 28, 1969, four police officers in plainclothes raided The Stonewall, at the time, one of the few 'safe spaces' for LGBTQ in the city, albeit owned at the time by the Mafia. The raid began quietly, as this was a regular occurrence ... but then, something changed. The crowd grew restless...and conflicting reports of the time state that the police started to use violent force, which forced the crowd to respond in kind.
What happened next resulted in what became the first big push into 'gay liberation', and today's modern fight for LGBTQ rights. Take a look at the video above to get a sense of how The Stonewall Inn played its role in our history and continues today. And take a moment to remember those thousands who said "ENOUGH!" and fought back for their rights...and the rights of all LGBTQ+ people for decades to come.