Part of the NYC Cocktails & Curiosities Series

The Stonewall Inn is New York’s most famous gay bar and “where pride began.”

In 1969, the Mafia owned the bar and welcomed openly gay customers.  Police raids were common.  Typically, female-looking customers were lined up, and if they were transvestites, they were arrested.  On June 28, 1969, the patrons finally had enough and fought back against the police.  A series of violent clashes ensued that became known as the Stonewall Riots.  The protests were the start of the gay rights movement in America, and within two years, gay rights groups were active in every major American city.

Today, the Stonewall Inn is a National Historic Landmark and an icon for the LBGTQ community.  It tends to be a celebratory meeting spot for all gay pride events.  In the summer of 2011, New York legalized gay marriage.  The community’s celebration began at the Stonewall Inn.

About the NYC Cocktails & Curiosities Series of mixed media paintings

The debut gallery show of the paintings in this series coincided with the launch of the Cocktails and Curiosities Walking Tour Apps coded by the Artist Christi Scofield.  These tours feature famed spots in NYC with historical or pop-culture panache.  Cocktails & Curiosities is now part of the Carpe City