June 1 is the start of Pride Month, a month-long annual celebration, to honor the 1969 Stonewall uprising in Manhattan. The Stonewall uprising was a tipping point in the United States that sparked an international movement towards Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender and Queer (LGBTQ) liberation. It is a month to celebrate how far LGBTQ+ people have come while recognizing that the work continues.
On June 28, 1969, New York police raided the Stonewall Inn gay bar, sparking street protests in the surrounding Greenwich Village neighborhood. Due to the corona virus pandemic, more than 475 Pride events across the USA have been canceled or postponed.
This year the nation and the world are facing unprecedented challenges in the form of COVID-19. Orlando’s strength is our spirit of community and unwavering resilience — and it’s those qualities that must be called upon once again.
US has seen certain relaxations on the safer-at-home order earlier in May but the bar’s followed Milwaukee health official safety guidance and chose to remain closed. But that won’t stop them from kicking off Pride Month with nights of drag shows and DJ sets from June 4 to 7. They have some experience virtually entertaining: owners live-streamed drag and music shows on social media every Friday night since March. This year it is being celebrated in a unique way.
Performers submitted videos, or bar owners are filming them in the club safely, with no more than four people in the space at once.
They’re continuing to host events in part to support performers. During shows, they list payment options so viewers can tip the entertainers.
Bill Clinton was the first US President to officially recognize Pride Month in 1999 and 2000. Then, from 2009 to 2016, Barack Obama declared June LGBT Pride Month. In May 2019, Donald Trump recognized Pride Month with a tweet announcing his Administration had launched a global campaign to decriminalize homosexuality, although critics have noted that actions would speak louder than words.
