55 years ago on June 28th, 1969
Tensions between police and the gay community boil over into a revolt during an overnight raid on the Stonewall Inn
The gay community had suffered under repeated police raids, but during one night raid at Stonewall, clubgoers refused to disperse, and protested the actions of the police against one of the only clubs that would accept them. The uprising at the Stonewall Inn began as clubgoers stood up against the repeated raids and undercover police sting operations targeting gay clubs, and a movement grew from those first days of fighting that formed the modern movement for LGBT rights.
The "Stonewall Riots" marked a turning-point in the fight for gay rights, and on the one year anniversary of the riots, the first LGBT pride march in history took place from Christopher Street to Central Park, with simultaneous parades in Los Angeles and Chicago.
NYPD Commissioner O'Neill made a public statement on June 6th formally apologizing for the actions of the NYPD in 1969.
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