The Latest: Celebrities salute Stonewall on 50th anniversary
NEW YORK (AP) — The Latest on the 50th anniversary of the Stonewall rebellion (all times local):
9:00 p.m.
New York Mayor Bill de Blasio joined a rally at Stonewall Inn, saying "Happy Pride, everybody!" to thousands of cheering people celebrating the legacy of the 1969 uprising. He called those who were arrested then "brave," setting the stage for future LGBTQ rights.
NYC Pride organized the rally on Friday evening in front of Stonewall as a grassroots gathering including activists, organizers and politicians.
Among them was Emma Gonzalez, who survived last year's high school massacre in Parkland, Florida, and is a bisexual gun-control advocate. Also in the crowd was Barbara Poma, owner of the Pulse Nightclub in Coral Springs, Florida, the scene of one of the worst mass shootings in U.S. history.
A flag from the transgender community was presented to the Stonewall owners.
3:20 p.m.
Lady Gaga, Whoopi Goldberg, Alicia Keys, drag performers and other artists have led a crowd of thousands marking the 50th anniversary of the Stonewall rebellion that catalyzed a movement for LGBTQ liberation.
Celebrities, New Yorkers and visitors from around the world converged on the Stonewall Inn in New York City on Friday to celebrate the uprising and its legacy.
Gaga told those gathered that they "are the definition of courage." Keys serenaded them with her hit "Girl on Fire" and other songs, including "True Colors," a 1980s hit for Cyndi Lauper. Its chorus declares: "Your true colors are beautiful like a rainbow."
Goldberg urged the throng to "remember the people who didn't make it this far" after helping pave a way forward for LGBTQ rights.
On June 28, 1969, patrons resisted a police raid at the Stonewall Inn, sparking protests and longer-term activism.
1:20 p.m.
Hundreds of people are gathering outside the Stonewall Inn in New York City to mark the 50th anniversary of the rebellion that catalyzed a movement for LGBTQ liberation.
New Yorkers and visitors from around the world filed past the landmark bar Friday, taking photos, awaiting musical performances and reflecting on the 1969 uprising.
Patrons at the gay bar resisted a police raid, sparking days of protests and longer-term organizing that made the cause of LGBTQ rights far more visible than it had been in the U.S.
Standing outside the bar, Richard Walker said: "Fifty years ago, people stood up for their rights, and look where we're at now."
The 58-year-old New Yorker and airline worker says he was "getting goosebumps just really thinking about it."
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This story has been corrected to show the man outside the bar is Richard Walker, not Robert Walker.
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11 a.m.
New York City is marking the 50th anniversary of the Stonewall uprising.
In 1969, a police raid on a gay bar in Manhattan led to a riot and days of demonstrations that morphed into a sustained LGTB liberation movement.
The streets outside the modern reincarnation of the Stonewall Inn were blocked off Friday in preparation for a day of celebrations including musical performances and an evening rally.
The city's huge Pride parade on Sunday also swings past the bar and a tiny, green park outside, which is at the center of the Stonewall National Monument.
