March 28, 2024 The Newspaper Serving LGBT Los Angeles

L.A.’s First Pride Parade, a Celebration Born From Strife

L.A.’s first official Pride parade was held June 28, 1970, just one year after the start of the Stonewall riots in New York. The years before the first pride march had been defined by violence, police raids, and targeted protests by a queer community that was just starting to take up arms against oppression. In May of 1959, trans women in L.A.’s “Skid Row” neighborhood found themselves taking arms against a sea of cops by chucking doughnuts and coffee cups for their own protection at Cooper’s Donuts. In 1966, a raid on the Black Cat Tavern in Silver Lake spurred another round of protests from queer folks who had had their fill of police persecution.

In May of 1969, the L.A. City elections found queer people rioting against the appointment of openly-homophobic District 13 council member Paul Lamport (who claimed that gays were “molesters.”) In November of the same year, Reverend Troy Perry, enraged about his boyfriend’s recent arrest after a raid on the Patch Bar, organized a protest in Downtown L.A. calling for reform of the homophobic laws that existed to put gay men behind bars. In March of 1970, 200 L.A. citizens marched on Downtown’s Main Street in memory of the murder of Howard Effland, a gay man who had been beaten to death by police officers at the Dover Hotel.

By the time the one-year anniversary of Stonewall rolled around, L.A. queer activism had already been flexing its growing muscles in the face of injustice for some time. The seeds for Pride had been planted and sewn by widespread discrimination and violence. On June 28, the queer community came out in full force to make sure its numbers would be seen, heard, and recognized. The revolution had already begun. Now it had a name.

    The Christopher Street West Parade, as it was initially named, had a rocky start. Organizers were denied a parade permit unless they could guarantee $1.5 million in securities, a ridiculously high number that no one expected the organizers to be able to pay.  When Herb Selwyn, the attorney for the Mattachine Society, got involved in the process, he fought the police commission’s discrimination and won the parade its permit. An early poster for the event proudly advertised the fact, inviting queer folks and allies to come rally at the intersection of Hollywood and McCadden: “parade permit granted!” Bob Humphries, Morris Kight, and Reverend Troy Perry planned the commemoration parade, plotted out its course, and went about the near-impossible task of organizing a march to promote the rights and visibility of a group that was still, by and large, criminalized in the state of California. Within days of securing their permit, they’d planned the entire march with government-granted LAPD protection guaranteed for marchers and spectators.

By 1974, L.A. Pride had already brought elephants into the mix.

It wasn’t just a monumental win for gay rights – it was one of the first moments in American history when a denial of fundamental rights for queer folks was seen as a direct contradiction to the American constitution.^o    This year’s march, with its theme of political resistance, has been set up as a kind of supplanting of the usual celebration. Instead of marching for Pride, we march for change. But for the queer community in Los Angeles, Pride has never been just about celebration. It’s been about challenging the status quo, fighting for reform, and keeping sight of how much more work is still to be done. The #Resist march is perfectly in league with the spirit of L.A.’s first pride celebration. It’s a rallying cry: We must change our country, and that change has to start here, in our own backyard.

Related Posts

WeHo Commemorates Transgender Day of Remembrance 2021

November 30, 2021

November 30, 2021

The City of West Hollywood commemorated Transgender Day of Rememberance through a virtual event.  Transgender Day of Remembrance (TDOR) is...

WeHo Approves Resolution Recognizing November As Native American Heritage Month

November 10, 2021

November 10, 2021

The City of West Hollywood City Council has approved a Resolution recognizing November as Native American Heritage Month. The Resolution...

New Documentary Pays Tribute to Transgender ‘AIDS diva’ Connie Norman

October 26, 2021

October 26, 2021

A new documentary titled “AIDS Diva: The Legend of Connie Norman,” will pay tribute to the transgender leader in AIDS...

WeHo Asking For Community Input On Naming Request to Rename the West Hollywood Library

July 26, 2021

July 26, 2021

The City of West Hollywood is conducting a community survey to solicit public input about a naming request to rename...

Patrick O’Connell, AIDS Activist, Dead At 67

May 6, 2021

May 6, 2021

Patrick O’Connell, a venerable AIDS activist and creator of the iconic red ribbon creating awareness about the disease, has died...

Ivy Bottini – WeHo Icon & LGBTQ Advocate Dies

March 14, 2021

March 14, 2021

Ivy Bottini an artist, mother and a legendary activist, devoting over 50 years to the feminist & LGBTQ  struggle for...

Black History Month: Celebrating Bayard Rustin

January 31, 2021

January 31, 2021

Bayard Rustin was an American leader in social movements for civil rights, socialism, nonviolence, and gay rights. Due to criticism...

WeHo Will Commemorate MLK Jr. Day With Virtual Donation Drive

January 17, 2021

January 17, 2021

In January 2021, the City of West Hollywood will continue its tradition of joining hundreds of communities across the country...

City Of WeHo Celebrates Veterans Day 2020

November 8, 2020

November 8, 2020

The City of West Hollywood will honor veterans and active members of the United States Armed Forces during a virtual...

USC One Archives to Host Screening of Film on Black Trans Woman to Honor Black History Month

February 1, 2020

February 1, 2020

Meet Mary Jones, a black transgender woman born in New York in 1803. Described as a “man-monster” in the press. ...

VIDEO: South Coast Chorale’s Tribute to Gay & Civil Rights Activist

January 24, 2020

January 24, 2020

67 years ago, openly gay civil rights activist Bayard Rustin was arrested on a discriminatory, anti-gay “lewd conduct” charge for...

Honoring Gay Rights & Civil Rights Activist Bayard Rustin

January 21, 2020

January 21, 2020

On this day in history 67 years ago, gay civil rights organizer Bayard Rustin was arrested on a discriminatory, anti-gay...

GAY LA: When Catherine Opie Ruled LA

November 14, 2019

November 14, 2019

By Henry Giardina In the first season of the original “L Word,” art plays a bizarrely large role. For a...

Documentary Honors Los Angeles’ LGBTQ+ Vets for Veterans Day

November 11, 2019

November 11, 2019

In honor of Veterans Day, some LGBT Senior Veterans at the Los Angeles LGBT Center shared their stories and experiences...

GAY LA – When Drag Was All the Rage (But Queerness Wasn’t)

August 6, 2019

August 6, 2019

Today, it’s not hard to find drag culture wherever you are. From VH1, to Netflix, to Twitter, the language of...