I am not ashamed

The title of this post is very important.  I am not ashamed.  I am not ashamed of my past, of my present, and I hope to all that believe that I'm not ashamed of my future.  Pride is important cause it reminds us that we do not have to ashamed any longer.

Not long ago there were the Stonewall Riots.  So many people have no clue what these riots were about, so let me shed a little light on it for you.

Stonewall Inn 1969  CC BY-SA 3.0

The Stonewall Inn was in NYC and it was a premier place for GLBT people to go, back in a time when "gay bars" didn't really exist.  The problem was, in the 1960s, many places had "morality police" whose job it was to break up and arrest anyone that might be doing "gay things".  The Stonewall Inn thwarted the morality police by having looking outs, and paying off people within the police unit to tip them off when a raid was supposed to happen.  June 28, 1969, however, the Inn was raided and resulted in several people being beaten and arrested.  The police finally broke up the spectators who had come to see what was happening.  However, the next day more people arrived at the Stonewall Inn, protesting and sympathizing with the patrons of the Inn.

That was, reportedly, the first pride march.  After the Stonewall Riots people began to organize.  Gay rights began to be a "thing".  And more and more people began to stop hiding who they were/are and stepping out in the name of equal rights.

Because of the Stonewall Riots, I am not ashamed of who I am.  Because fate allowed people to band together, instead of being torn apart, I stand in June and march in the parade and I am proud.

Remember to always be proud of who you are, it's very important.

Until Next Time.