ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. — This month will mark 53 years since the Stonewall riots began.
The demonstrations led up to the start of Pride celebrations across the nation, including the St. Pete Pride Parade, the largest in Florida.
It wouldn't be possible without the people who fought back after police raided a gay club, the Stonewall Inn, in New York City's Greenwich Village on June 28, 1969.
J. Carl DeVine was there when the riots began. He now serves as executive director of Banyan Tree Project, Inc. in St. Petersburg.
“You went to jail for being who you were during that period of time," DeVine said. "It wasn’t an easy time for us, especially among people of color.”
At the time, being gay was nearly illegal, Jay Chetney, a St. Pete man who was there when the uprising began, said.
Although LGBTQ patrons were allowed to be served at bars, police harassment continued because any type of same-sex public display of affection was still viewed as illegal.
That night, patrons refused to leave and a riot ensued. The uprising would last nearly a week and the first Pride parade would be held one year later.
"It's thanks to the very brave individuals mainly led by Black and brown trans women who had the audacity and the bravery," Tiffany Freisberg, St. Pete Pride president, said. "It's thanks to them that we have a Pride celebration. It's really important we never lose sight of that."
DeVine said it's important to note the fight for acceptance still isn't over within all spectrums of the LGBTQ community, along with others who are straight.
"We are all human. We're all created by the same creator and he didn't create one better than the other," DeVine said.
Organizers of St. Pete Pride hold The Stonewall Reception during Pride month to remember the past.