Pride Inside

‘Pride’ is an annual celebration of the LGBT community. It originates from the 1969 Stonewall Riots, in which members of the LGBT community fought back against the police brutality they suffered daily.

The Stonewall Inn was situated on Christopher Street in New York and was one of the few spaces where LGBT people could exist freely. It was regularly raided by the police, who would then attack and arrest the participants of the club. The charges on these arrests could include dancing too closely with a person of the same sex, or not wearing a minimum of 3 pieces of clothes that were gender appropriate This sort of discrimination was commonplace for our community. However, on the night of June 28th, those at the Stonewall Inn had had enough and fought back against the police.

Key Players in the Stonewall Riots

There is debate on how the riots were sparked, however something that historians can agree on is the significant impact that BAME LGBT people and Trans Women had on the night. Some key players included; 

• Stormé DeLarverie - Stormé DeLarverie was a butch lesbian who is thought to have been hit by the police the night of the Stonewall Riots and sparked the crowd to fight back. She was a performer and gay civil rights activist and was known as the “guardian of lesbians” in Greenwich Village. 

• Marsha P. Johnson - Marsha P. Johnson was labeled as the person who ‘threw the first brick at Stonewall’. Though she herself denied this, stating she threw a shot glass and not even the first one - there is no denying that she had a huge impact on the night and on the LGBT community in general through her work helping the trans community in Christopher Street. 

• Miss Major Griffin-Gracey - Another Black Trans Woman involved in the night, Miss Major Griffin-Gracey was a leader in the riots and went on to be the executive director of the TGI Justice Project. 

• Sylvia Rivera - was also a key player in the riots who later went on to establish STAR (Street Transvestite Action Revolutionaries) an organisation providing housing and support to homeless LGBT+ Youth. 

BIPOC LGBT people were monumental in the riots that began the modern LGBT rights movement, and have been heavily involved with many advances within the movement since the Stonewall Riots. It is important to remember the intersectionals of our community and involve ourselves in movements and organisations that help BIPOC also. 

The Aftermath of the Stonewall Riots 

The aftermath of the riot involved a surge of new gay right movements. The Gay Liberation Front was born, with a flyer announcing the occasion: "Do you think homosexuals are revolting? You bet your sweet ass we are." On June 28th 1970, the following year, a few hundred gay men and lesbians marched from Christopher Street up Sixth Ave and to Central Park bearing handmade banners with slogans like "Gay Pride" and "Gay is Good." It's the first gay pride march in New York—known back then as the Christopher Street Gay Liberation Day. In London, the first Pride Parade took place in 1972. We now celebrate Pride annually as a way of both commemorating the generations before us and as a way to take pride in ourselves now. This is why it is important to us that we continue to celebrate Pride even now during lockdown. 

The original LGBTQ+ flag was designed by an artist called Gilbert Baker in 1978 who was also an openly gay man and drag queen. Gilbert was inspired by Harvey Milk, a prominent LGBTQ+ politician, to create a symbol of pride for the community. He saw the rainbow as a natural flag and so adopted 8 colours with their own individual meanings. 

After the assassination of Harvey Milk in late 1978, demand for the flag rose greatly. Due to fabric being unavailable, the flag was sold as a 7 striped flag without the hot pink stripe. The number of stripes was reduced again in 1979 when the organisers of the 1979 San Francisco Parade decided to split the flag in two so they can have them on each side of the street. This created the 6 stripe flag most commonly used today. 

Many new flags have been created since, to promote inclusivity and as a sign of progress. Some of the most commonly seen flags today are the Philadelphia pride flag and the Progress flag designed by Daniel Quasar. 

Meanings of the Colours

The Philadelphia Flag

Progress Flag

The LGBT community have always managed to celebrate their culture and be proud of themselves throughout history. One large part of LGBT culture that is still strong today is the Ballroom Culture scene.

Ballroom culture has been a part of LGBT culture for years, with ball shows and events originating in Harlem dating back to the 19th Century. LGBT people from far and wide would come together in competitions that would showcase fashion, dance and music and gender fluidity through drag. The shows were underground as there were still laws put in place that restricted and criminalised gender non-conforming people - however they provided a safehaven for the LGB and (more prominently) the Trans community. Shows would include themes and participants would wear extravagant outfits to walk the runway and be judged.

Ballroom culture had a significant impact on present day society, through shows such as RuPaul’s Drag Race and Pose, or dancing like the famous ‘Vogueing’ style. This dance style even introduced many present day common phrases - through the wild movements of vogueing, participants would ‘read’ each other and the winner would be decided based on who ‘threw the best shade’. It should be remembered that ballroom culture originated specifically from the Black and Latinx American LGBT community. Many parts of the culture we have as LGBT people come from BIPOC LGBT individuals and it is important to note that whilst interacting with the larger community.

If you want to find out more about the ballroom scene, we suggest the documentary ‘Paris is Burning’ and the show ‘Pose’ written by the amazing Janet Mock.