Interior of Stonewall Inn (2019-03-06) by CyArkCyArk
There aren't many bars or pubs that can claim to be at the centre of a global movement. But the Stonewall Inn in Greenwich Village, New York City is certainly one of them. Take the 3D tour below and discover how the bar became pivotal to the LGBTQ+ rights movement.
Stonewall Inn, New York CityCyArk
Located on the Lower East Side of Manhattan, the Stonewall was the scene of a demonstration by gay rights protestors following a bungled raid on 28 June 1969. Undercover police attempted to raid the bar but word quickly spread and a crowd gathered outside.
As police attempted to drag customers from the bar to waiting police wagons in the street, the crowd grew increasingly restless and agitated by the unfair treatment and a confrontation occurred between police and protestors.
The situation escalated until the Tactical Police Force was called in to clear the streets, which they did at around 4am. But something had changed that night and the local community realised that something needed to be done.
The events at the Stonewall Inn would inspire a global movement that continues to grow to this day.
Stonewall Inn, New York CityCyArk
The Stonewall Inn itself would close (later to reopen in 1972) but this flashpoint inspired the community to organize the world's first Pride Parade, taking place on 28 June 1970 (exactly one year after the raid), from Greenwich Village to Sheep Meadow in Central Park.
Although the bar itself would go through good and bad times over the following decades, the events of that evening of 28 June 1969 would be the epicentre of a global movement for equality and freedom from prejudice.
In 1999, thanks to the efforts of the Greenwich Village Society for Historic Preservation and the Organization of Lesbian and Gay Architects and Designers, and for its significance to gay and lesbian history, the Stonewall was listed on the National Register of Historic Places.
One of the original eight-color flags flying at United Nations Plaza in San Francisco during Gay Freedom Day 1978 by Crawford Wayne BartonGLBT Historical Society
Want to know more?
You can discover more about the legacy of the Stonewall Inn and subsequent Pride movement here.
