Some might know June as a month-long celebration of LGBTQ+ or simply a time when corporations change their social avatars into rainbows. As we head into Pride Month, the team at Bike Athletic would like to help others understand its history. This month is filled with fun and positivity across the nation and the world. But it’s also essential to understand how Pride Month came to be and its importance in the LGBTQ+ liberation movement.
What is Pride Month?
LGBTQ+ Pride Month celebrates lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer pride during June. It began the year after the 1969 Stonewall Riots, which demanded gay liberation, and now honors the movement for LGBTQ rights and celebrates LGBTQ culture.
The Origins & History of Pride Month
Pride Month began as a commemoration of the Stonewall Riots and soon after that became a march for further liberation. The Stonewall Riots In the early morning of June 28th, 1969, NYC police raided the Stonewall Inn—a prominent gay bar in New York City’s neighborhood of Greenwich Village. Cops stormed the building, harassed and arrested patrons, forcing them into police vehicles outside the bar. A restless and frustrated crowd gathered and fought back against the homophobic officers. Protests continued that night and over the next few days. They initiated one of the vital watershed moments in gay rights and liberation.
Not wanting to lose steam or have people forget about their movement, activists initiated the first parade and protest marches in Chicago, Los Angeles, New York City, and San Francisco in 1970, around the first anniversary of Stonewall. Since then, these events have become annual international celebrations. And in 1999, the National Park Service added the Stonewall Inn to the National Register of Historic Places.
June Becomes Pride Month
In 1999, President Bill Clinton made a presidential proclamation declaring June of that year “Gay and Lesbian Pride Month.” Then in 2011, President Barack Obama expanded Pride Month to include the LGBTQ+ community. Nearly every president since Clinton has made the proclamation designating June as Pride Month.
Pride Month 2023
Looking to celebrate Pride this year and wondering where to go? No matter where you live or wish to travel, there’s sure to be a Pride celebration near you. The International Gay and Lesbian Travel Association produces a calendar of hundreds of Pride events around the world that’s updated yearly to help you find the celebration that works best for your schedule.
New York City holds some of the world’s largest Pride celebrations and parades, and it’s the foundational town of this momentous event. So if you want a crazy celebration in the place where it all started, then Manhattan is the place for you.
As the commercial and corporate influence on Pride grows stronger, some worry that the true spirit of the movement is being lost. In response, activists have organized alternative Pride events that stay true to the personal, political roots of the movement and demand lasting change.
No matter how you choose to celebrate this year, whether at a massive parade in New York City or a small, independent event in your hometown, make sure to take a moment to remember the powerful history behind Pride Month and the ongoing fight for LGBTQ+ liberation.