Stonewall Summer Pride 2012
The Stonewall Riots, a spontaneous series of demonstrations against unfair police raids and many other injustices that were done to the GLBT community, occurred at the Stonewall Inn in the Greenwich Village
Stonewall Summer Pride 2012
The Stonewall Riots, a spontaneous series of demonstrations against unfair police raids and many other injustices that were done to the GLBT community, occurred at the Stonewall Inn in the Greenwich Village neighborhood of New York City in the early morning hours of June 28, 1969. These demonstrations are considered by many to be the birth of the gay rights movement.
The Stonewall Inn was owned by the mafia and catered to an eclectic group of people including transvestites, hustlers, effeminate young men and homeless youth. For several nights after the raid there were protests and within week’s activist groups were organized to establish places where the GLBT community could be open about their sexual orientation without the fear of being harassed or arrested. One year later, on June 28, 1970, the first gay pride marches took place in Los Angeles and in New York City commemorating the anniversary of the riots. Today, 43 years later, gay pride events are held all over the country. Whereas a lot of them are celebrated in June, you can find gay pride events in every month of the year.
In commemoration of the Stonewall Riots, Stonewall Summer Pride comes to Fort Lauderdale on June 24, 2012. The party begins at 12 noon when Wilton Drive comes alive with the Stonewall Summer Pride Street Festival. Festivities include live entertainment, food, drink, exhibits and the children’s pride park.
The party continues throughout the day, and then at 7:00 pm the Stonewall Summer Pride Twilight Parade takes to the street with fabulous floats and costumes. Following the parade, the stage comes alive for the Stonewall Summer Pride Concert.
Andy Bell of Erasure to Headline Stonewall Summer Pride
As one half of European synth-pop duo Erasure, Andy Bell has sold over 20 million albums worldwide and has become a name synonymous with dance and pop music. From 1986 to 1997, Bell and Erasure achieved 24 consecutive Top 20 hits including “A Little Respect”, “Chains of Love”, “Oh L’amour” and “Always” and the band became extremely popular within the LGBT community. Andy Bell has since become a gay icon and will headline Stonewall Summer Pride 2012.
For more information, please visit StonewallSummerPride.com and check back in next week’s magazine for the full line-up of events!
