Stonewall was a rebellion and a release of fear. But it was also the celebration of personhood by queer Americans standing proud and unashamed. Growing at times to 40 strong, they prowled the park like packs of hunting dogs in search of prey. When they found a gay man hiding behind a tree they beamed powerful lights into his face. Run and never come back, they said, or we will beat you to a pulp. When that failed, the self-appointed defenders of morality took things to the next level.

Have a question? Need assistance? Use our online form to ask a librarian for help. Historians have noted that the shift in activism, if Stonewall truly represented one at all, was a shift primarily for white cisgender people, as people of color and gender non-confroming people never truly had the benefit of concealing their marginalized identities. While the events of Stonewall are often referred to as "riots," Stonewall veterans have explicitly stated that they prefer the term Stonewall uprising or rebellion. The reference to these events as riots was initially used by police to justify their use of force.

In , police raids of gay bars in Manhattan followed a template. Officers would pour in, threatening and beating bar staff and clientele. Patrons would pour out, lining up on the street so police could arrest them. Patrons and onlookers fought back—and the days-long melee that ensued, characterized then as a riot and now known as the Stonewall Rebellion, helped spark the modern LGBTQ civil rights movement. Each June, Pride Month honors the history of Stonewall with parades and events.

The raid sparked a riot among bar patrons and neighborhood residents as police roughly hauled employees and patrons out of the bar, leading to six days of protests and violent clashes with law enforcement outside the bar on Christopher Street, in neighboring streets and in nearby Christopher Park. The Stonewall Riots served as a catalyst for the gay rights movement in the United States and around the world. The s and preceding decades were not welcoming times for lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender LGBT Americans.