Appreciation thread for the men and women at Stonewall who said "Enough."

[Politicub]

Today millions of Americans are hearing about the Stonewall riots for the first time, and every mainstream media outlet in the country is covering it.

A grateful THANK YOU to all of the people who fought back in Greenwich Village in 1969. And also a solemn regret that many of them aren't alive today to see how they changed the world.

[RKP5637]

1. K&R !!! K&R !!! K&R !!! K&R !!! K&R !!!

[arcane1]

2. They are talking about Obama's reference to Stonewall on tv??

I was delighted to read (here on DU!) that he had mentioned it, and said in an earlier thread that I hope it led to more Google searches on the topic, but I didn't expect talking heads to talk about it!

[Politicub]

3. It's everywhere and a thing of beauty

[arcane1]

6. That makes me very happy to hear. The country crossed a threshold today :)

Thanks for the news!

[rug]

4. Some faces.

This photograph appeared in the front page of The New York Daily News on Sunday, June 29, 1969, showing the "street kids" who were the first to fight with the police.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stonewall_riots

[Politicub]

8. +1

to a beautiful expression of defiance.

[cordelia]

10. Thank you, rug.

[rug]

12. You're welcome. I used to walk by that bar daily.

I am still amazed by what they did.

[Laochtine]

5. When one of us isn't

free, none of us are

[RKP5637]

9. Well said!!!

[Laochtine]

15. Thank you friend

[TeamPooka]

7. k+r!

[starroute]

11. I'm thinking in particular of the late, great Dave Van Ronk

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dave_Van_Ronk

Dave Van Ronk (June 30, 1936 – February 10, 2002) was an American folk singer, born in Brooklyn, New York, who settled in Greenwich Village, New York, and was eventually nicknamed the "Mayor of MacDougal Street" .

He was an important figure in the acoustic folk revival of the 1960s. His work ranged from old English ballads to Bertolt Brecht, blues, gospel, rock, New Orleans jazz, and swing. He was also known for performing instrumental ragtime guitar music, especially his transcription of St. Louis Tickle and Scott Joplin's Maple Leaf Rag.

Van Ronk was a widely admired avuncular figure in "the Village", presiding over the coffeehouse folk culture and acting as a friend to many up and coming artists by inspiring, assisting, and promoting them. Folk performers whom he befriended include Bob Dylan, Tom Paxton, Patrick Sky, Phil Ochs, Ramblin' Jack Elliott, Guthrie Thomas, and Joni Mitchell. . . .

Van Ronk was among the thirteen people arrested at the Stonewall Inn June 28, 1969--the night that the Stonewall Riots, which many cite as the start of the gay rights movement, began. The New York Times reported the next day that he was arrested and later parolled on his own recognizance for having thrown a heavy object at a patrolman. City records reveal he was charged with felony assault in the second degree[9] and pled guilty to the lesser charge of harassment, classified in 1969 as a violation under pL 240.25. A June 29, 1969 article in the The New York Post, and a 1996 inverview of eyewitness Steve Yates, reveal that Van Ronk was pulled by police from the crowd outside and dragged inside.

[Politicub]

14. I need to learn more about the individuals

Great link. Thank you.

[Chorophyll]

13. K&R

[Gemini Cat]

16. another k and r!

[Cha]

17. I do hope there are those who were there

at Stonewall heard it mentioned in PBO's speech today! I read a Loud Cheer went up in the Mall!

Barack Obama's Stonewall moment: an inaugural landmark for gay equality

The best inaugural addresses of presidents past can be reduced to a single phrase or line: "With malice toward none, with charity for all …" (Lincoln); "The only thing we have to fear is fear itself" (Roosevelt); "Ask not what your country can do for you …" (Kennedy).

Barack Obama's second inaugural may not be as enduring as those classics. But it will enter the history books for one line, perhaps even just one word: "Stonewall".

The low-ceilinged dive of a gay bar on Christopher Street in New York's Greenwich Village, which was raided by the NYPD in 1969, is now elevated to American immortality by the head of state. When I heard Obama say Stonewall, I twitched in disbelief. And then, as the president opened his second term with a call for gay equality, I realized just how profoundly, and with what amazing speed, the United States is changing.

http://www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree/2013/jan/21/barack-obama-stonewall-inaugural-gay-equality

[fadedrose]

18. Maybe "not enough" - I never heard of it...

[Politicub]

21. But nearly everyone did yesterday

If you haven't done so already, I would suggest that you google Stonewall and read some of the history of that period of time. Even as a gay man, I didn't learn about it until I was well into my twenties.

[Luminous Animal]

19. Before Stonewall, Cooper's Donuts (LA 1959) & Compton's (SF 1966)...

http://www.queerty.com/before-stonewall-there-was-the-coopers-donuts-and-comptons-cafeteria-riots-20111007/2/

Trans people, hustlers and disenfranchised gay locals picketed the cafeteria the following night, when the restaurant’s windows were smashed again. Unlike the Stonewall riots, the situation at Compton’s was somewhat organized—many picketers were members of militant queer groups like the Street Orphans and Vanguard.

Also, the city’s response was quite different from the reaction in New York: A network of social, mental and medical support services was established, followed in 1968 by the creation of the National Transsexual Counseling Unit, overseen by a member of the SFPD. Directors Victor Silverman and Susan Stryker’s recount the historic two-day incident in their 2005 film, Screaming Queens: The Riot at Compton’s Cafeteria.

[Politicub]

22. +1 - wow

I hadn't heard of these things and have a lot to learn.

So much rich history to study!

[Heidi]

20. Kick!

[Bohunk68]

23. To this day I recall how it felt when it happened.

Was living in Cleveland at the time and was at a gay bar when the news went around. It was like a frisson. Static in the air. The Fairies fought back!! Drags and street kids. It was powerful. No longer sit in the back seat and STFU. Be Out! Be Proud! It was electric!!! We looked at one another with amazement. It was empowering. It brought out the middle class.

[Politicub]

24. I was born 5 years after Stonewall

I can get enough of the history surrounding the event.