Hey, history lovers. I'm Mike Rosenwald with Retropod, a show about the past, rediscovered.

If you've ever attended a pride parade, you know that these events celebrating the LGBT

community are often marked by their colorful, raucous, party-like atmosphere.

And while there has been criticism over the inclusivity and

corporatization of these marches, they are largely a loud, visible celebration of the queer community.

But the very first Pride March could not have been more different.

It was started by a man named Frank Kameney.

He'd been kicked out of a federal government job because he was gay.

So he decided to do something about it.

On July 4th, 1964, Kameney organized a demonstration in Philadelphia. A few dozen

people attended, and Kameney had pretty strict rules for how they should behave. He insisted

on business attire, suits and ties for men. He provided them signs with messages like, quote,

homosexuals deserve equal empowerment.

The group marched in a line in front of Philly's Independence Hall.

It was all very calm and orderly.

This continued for several years as an event called the annual reminder,

a reminder to the country on its birthday

that the rights it promised its citizens

were being denied to gay people.

Then came 1969, and Stonewall.

On June 29, 1969, police raided a gay bar called the Stonewall Inn on Christopher Street in New York City.

Days of protests and unrest followed as the city's gay community, fed up with harassment and discrimination, took to the streets.

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