The Pride Movement
In order to understand the origins of the Pride Movement, one must look back to June 28th, 1969.
The Stonewall Inn, an LGBTQIA+ bar in the Greenwich Village neighborhood in Manhattan, New York City, was the location for what is "widely considered to be the single most important event leading to the gay liberation movement and the modern fight for LGBTQIA+ rights in the United States" (National Parks Service).
Stonewall
The years leading up to the events at Stonewall were filled with violence, police brutality, discrimination, and hate toward the LGBTQIA+ community. Continued, targeted raids by the New York City police led to tension between the department and the LGBTQIA+ community, specifically the patrons at Stonewall. It wasn't long before the tension developed into protests, and then riots. Anger toward the injustice experienced by the LGBT community came to a point, and the crowd struggled against the police. One individual who was there, Michael Fader, said the following: "We felt that we had freedom at last, or freedom to at least show that we demanded freedom. We weren't going to be walking meekly in the night and letting them shove us around—it's like standing your ground for the first time and in a really strong way, and that's what caught the police by surprise. There was something in the air, freedom a long time overdue, and we're going to fight for it. It took different forms, but the bottom line was, we weren't going to go away. And we didn't."
Photo from PBS, originally published in the New York Daily News.
The Stonewall Riots predicted the rise of a new era in LGBTQIA+ affairs worldwide. Activists such as Marsha P. Johnson -- an African-American trans woman, sex worker, and founder of the Gay Liberation Front -- were instrumental in the Stonewall uprising, and indeed were strong catalysts of the movement. With Johnson, Sylvia Rivera helped start some of the first programs to serve LGBTQIA+ people on the streets. The efforts of Johnson and Rivera, along with many others, paved the way for LGBTQIA+ rights today.
The first gay pride, called the "Christopher Street Liberation Day" was held on June 28th, 1970 in New York City. Christopher Street was the location of the Stonewall Inn. This first pride, simultaneously held in Chicago and Los Angeles, commemorated the Stonewall Riots. A year later, more pride celebrations took place around the world -- everywhere from the United Kingdom, to France, to Germany, to Sweden.
Ten years later, in 1980, St. Louis had their first Gay and Lesbian Pride Celebration. Sponsored by the "Magnolia Committee," named for the street where the majority of the member lived and had their meetings, a week's worth of activities were planned in April of 1980. Each year thereafter, Pride in St. Louis grew larger. In the process, "Pride St. Louis," the nonprofit organization planning PrideFest each year, was born. In 2017, Pride St. Louis welcomed 300,000 people to Downtown St. Louis.
History of Pride St. Louis
The Lesbians and Gays Walk for Charity
What would become known as the "St. Louis Lesbian & Gay Pride Celebration Committee" was born in 1979, but the first St. Louis Pride Celebration didn’t occur until 1980. The event was sponsored by the Magnolia Committee – named for the street where the majority of the members lived and had their meetings. Their combined effort with a second organization resulted in a weeks worth of activities held in April of 1980. At the end of the week, hundreds gathered for “The Lesbians and Gays Walk for Charity” which progressed down Lindell Boulevard in the Central West End to Washington University’s quadrangle. These two groups combined to become the St. Louis Lesbian & Gay Pride Celebration Committee.
During the same time, writer Jim Thomas invited representatives from organizations around town to begin discussions for an annual celebration. It was to be held in June as a tribute to the Stonewall Riots, which occurred the last weekend of June in 1969. Each participating organization, still able to keep their identity in individual events, would form a larger group – thereby creating a greater whole. At the time, the celebration consisted of a picnic in the beginning of the week and a march at the end.
Thus began a tradition which is still strong today in St. Louis. June is now officially recognized as LGBTQ+ Pride Month, and since the first PrideFest in 1981, St. Louis' own event has grown in size, attendance, and scope. A Pride Festival takes on a huge importance for our community because it allows people to feel proud of who they are. We provide them a safer place to be who they wish to be, and that empowerment can be a life-altering experience.
Lesbians and Gays Walk for Charity down Market Street in St. Louis
1993 PrideFest at the World’s Fair Pavilion in Forest Park (From STL LGBT History project)
PFLAG in the Grand Pride Parade, 1991 (From STL LGBT History project)
Magnolia Committee Banner, 1980 (From STL LGBT History project)
1986 Miss Gay Illinois, Georgia Brown at Pride (From STL LGBT History Project)
1990 Pride GuideCover (From STL LGBT History project)
For over thirty years, Pride St. Louis, Inc. has been working to raise understanding and acceptance of Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, and Queer (LGBTQ+) individuals in our community. We are not a political group, but rather a community-based organization that envisions a world where diversity can be celebrated and prejudice has been eradicated. We welcome you to join us for a meeting, a workshop, or a special event. As an organization, we are working each and every day to bring about meaningful change right here in St. Louis.
The organization continues to grow, expanding services and hosting many year-round community initiatives, such as:
Festival Button, 1987 (From STL LGBT History project)
The largest annual pride festival in St. Louis
Community dinners
Support groups
Educational workshops
And so much more.