I had heard of the Stonewall Riots in Greenwich Village but to be perfectly honest it wasn’t until today that I did some reading about it after learning that today was the 40th anniversary.

The Stonewall riots were a series of spontaneous, violent demonstrations against a police raid that took place in the early morning hours of June 28, 1969, at the Stonewall Inn, in the Greenwich Village neighborhood of New York City. They are frequently cited as the first instance in American history when people in the homosexual community fought back against a government-sponsored system that persecuted sexual minorities, and they have become the defining event that marked the start of the gay rights movement in the United States and around the world.

By the looks of it the Stonewall Inn is now a bar (or should I say is still a bar) and you can click here to visit their website.

Although attitudes towards homosexuality has come a long way I don’t think this attitude is held by the majority of people just yet.  Take Proposition 8 which was a voter initiative to change the Californian Constitution to remove/change the text “Only marriage between a man and a woman is valid or recognized in California.”

Personally, I can’t imagine why anyone would want to uphold such a belief in these modern times BUT 7,000,000 Californian’s said with their vote that gay couples shouldn’t be allowed to get married.

Keeping this in context as well – I think California is one of the more open minded places on the planet and for more than 52% of voter to have that option I’m sure the numbers would look worse in somewhere like Northern Australia, Southern New Zealand, the US Midwest or anywhere in the middle east.

Sorry for the ramble guys – I don’t normally post about politics or gay rights but I suppose this is a thanks to those who had the courage to stand up for what is right back in 1969.