And most nights, the Stonewall hosts shows and events, including singing competitions, dance parties, drag shows and karaoke nights.īefore heading to the Stonewall, drop by Christopher Park, located just down the street from the bar. Visitors can stop by for a drink every day from 2:00 p.m. Today, the Stonewall Inn is a major tourist attraction, but it still operates as a bar, too. History dubbed Marsha’s angry pitch “the shot glass that was heard around the world.” Johnson incited the riots when she hurled a shot glass across the Stonewall bar, smashing it to bits, while shouting, “I got my civil rights!” Word of the riots spread like wildfire through LGBT communities across the country, launching the modern LGBT rights movements.
Some historians claim that a transgender woman named Marsha P. During one altercation, protesters formed a kick line, taunting police with song and dance, while driving them away from the Stonewall.
Several nights of riots ensued, pitting gays, lesbians and transgender women against the police in the streets surrounding the Stonewall. But that night the patrons resisted, which led to the historic Stonewall uprising. One night in 1969, the police raided the bar and began arresting its patrons, a common practice in those days, intended to dissuade LGBT people from gathering socially.
In the late 1960s, the Stonewall Inn was a seedy, mafia-run dive bar that catered to gays, lesbians and transgender clientele.