---
title: "Stonewall Uprising"
year: 1969
country: "United States"
canonical: "https://recap.at/1969/stonewall-uprising"
slug: "stonewall-uprising"
recapType: "global_event"
startDate: "1969-01-01"
---

# Stonewall Uprising

> The police raid on New York's Stonewall Inn sparked the modern LGBTQ+ rights movement and decades of activism.

On June 28, 1969, police raided the Stonewall Inn, a gay bar in New York City's Greenwich Village. What started as a routine arrest became a multi-day uprising that sparked the modern LGBTQ+ rights movement. The riots marked a turning point: rather than accept harassment, the community fought back.

## Summary

Stonewall Uprising is a 2010 American documentary film examining the events surrounding the Stonewall riots that began during the early hours of June 28, 1969. Stonewall Uprising made its theatrical debut on June 16, 2010, at the Film Forum in New York City. The film features interviews with 15 participants and eyewitnesses to the riots, including many who were active in the uprising and later went on to form gay liberation groups, as well as law enforcement who participated in the raids that precipitated the rebellion.

## Key facts

- **Location**: Stonewall Inn, 53 Christopher Street, Greenwich Village, New York City
- **Date**: June 28–July 3, 1969
- **Duration of initial riot**: Approximately 6 hours (early morning June 28)
- **Estimated participants (first night)**: 100–600 people
- **Police force**: New York Police Department (NYPD) raid team
- **Reported arrests (first night)**: 13 people
- **Key figure**: Marsha P. Johnson, Black trans activist and key organizer of resistance
- **First Pride March**: June 28, 1970, New York City (one year after uprising)

## Timeline

- **1969-06-28** - Police raid the Stonewall Inn
  NYPD officers conduct a raid on the Stonewall Inn in the early morning hours. Rather than dispersing quietly, patrons and street youth resist, initiating a confrontation that escalates into a riot.
- **1969-06-28** - Uprising spreads through Greenwich Village
  Hundreds gather in the streets surrounding the bar. Protesters throw rocks, bricks, and bottles at police. Fires are set. The riot continues for approximately 6 hours before police establish control.
- **1969-06-29** - Second night of resistance
  Crowds reassemble the following evening. A larger, more organized group gathers; estimates suggest 1,000–2,000 people. Police deploy riot gear. Clashes continue through the night.
- **1969-06-30** - Third night; crowds reach peak size
  An estimated 2,000+ protesters fill Christopher Street. Chants of 'Gay Power' emerge. Police barricade the Stonewall Inn with wooden boards.
- **1969-07-03** - Uprising subsides
  After five days of intermittent clashes, police presence remains heavy but crowds thin. The immediate uprising phase concludes, though activist organizing accelerates.
- **1969-07-31** - First planning meeting for Pride March
  Activists, including members of the newly formed Gay Liberation Front, meet to organize a commemorative march for the following year.
- **1970-06-28** - First Pride March (New York)
  An estimated 5,000–10,000 march from Washington Square Park to Central Park. The march is explicitly framed as an anniversary commemoration of Stonewall and a declaration of gay pride.
- **1970-06-28** - Pride marches in Los Angeles and San Francisco
  On the same day, parallel Pride marches occur in Los Angeles and San Francisco, spreading the movement nationwide.

## Voices

- **Inspector Seymour Pine, NYPD Tactical Patrol Force** (official, dismissive) - Synthesized from period NYPD statements and later interviews
  > We were there to enforce the law. Homosexuals were breaking the law, and we had a responsibility to maintain order in that area.
- **Craig Rodwell, Stonewall witness and activist** (consumer, celebratory) - Synthesized from oral histories and later activist accounts
  > For the first time, we weren't going to take it anymore. People were standing up and fighting back. That's what made it different.
- **The New York Times editorial board** (media, skeptical) - Synthesized from New York Times coverage, June 29-30, 1969
  > The police raid on a Greenwich Village bar was routine, but the reaction - violent resistance - was not. The causes run deep.
- **Dick Leitsch, president of the Mattachine Society** (expert, supportive) - Mattachine Society statements and interviews, July 1969
  > This is the first time in history that gays have ever fought back. This may be the most significant event in the history of the homosexual movement.
- **Village Voice journalist** (media, shocked) - Synthesized from Village Voice coverage, June 30 - July 3, 1969
  > Hundreds of young people, many in drag, fought police for hours. Bottles and stones flew. Nothing like this had happened before in the gay community.

## Impact

Stonewall galvanized LGBTQ+ activism from a scattered underground into an organized movement. Within a year, Pride marches emerged in New York, Los Angeles, and San Francisco. The uprising became the foundational myth for decades of civil rights organizing, legal battles, and cultural shift.

## Sources

- [Stonewall Uprising](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stonewall_Uprising) - Wikipedia

---
Canonical: https://recap.at/1969/stonewall-uprising