The five states newly added to the list have introduced bills in their legislatures this year that prevent transgender women and girls from participating in school sports consistent with their gender identity, block access to health care and allow the discrimination of the LGBTQ community, Bonta said.įlorida, Montana, Arkansas, and West Virginia passed laws that prevent transgender women and girls from participating in school sports consistent with their gender identity. The 12 other states on the list are: Texas, Alabama, Idaho, Iowa, Oklahoma, South Carolina, South Dakota, Kentucky, North Carolina, Kansas, Mississippi, Tennessee. Lawmakers in 2016 banned non-essential travel to states with laws that discriminate against lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender people. "Make no mistake: We're in the midst of an unprecedented wave of bigotry and discrimination in this country - and the State of California is not going to support it," Bonta said. SAN FRANCISCO - California added five more states, including Florida, to the list of places where state-funded travel is banned because of laws that discriminate against members of the LGBTQ community, the state attorney general announced Monday.ĭemocratic Attorney General Rob Bonta added Florida, Arkansas, Montana, North Dakota and West Virginia to the list that now has 17 states where state employee travel is forbidden except under limited circumstances. California added five more states, including Florida, to the list of places where state-funded travel is banned because of laws that discriminate against members of the LGBTQ community. Designed to champion, commemorate and celebrate the LGBTQ community, Pride Month has become an increasingly visible presence on the events calendar.California Attorney General Rob Bonta is shown here speaking earlier this year. Here’s a look at how it’s grown from a local affair into a global phenomenon. The origins of Pride Month are rooted in the Stonewall riots of 1969. "Be respectful and avoid treating Pride as a spectacle of the gays"Ī significant proportion of the Greenwich Village neighbourhood’s LGBTQ community subsequently came out in force to protest against their mistreatment.įrustrated by years of brutal persecution by the New York authorities, patrons of Manhattan gay bar the Stonewall Inn decided to fight back during one particular early morning raid in which 13 people were arrested.
Windows were smashed, police cars were trashed and attempts were made to set fire to the Inn itself during a violent uprising which lasted six days. The riots became a pivotal moment in the history of LGBTQ rights-both the Gay Activists Alliance and Gay Liberation Front were formed within months as a result. In 2016 President Barack Obama declared the Stonewall Inn site a national monument. On June 28, 1970, exactly a year after the Stonewall riots began, America witnessed its first ever Gay Pride march. Organised by Brenda Howard (above left), the LGBTQ rights activist hailed as the "Mother of Pride", the event was dubbed Christopher Street Liberation Day as a tribute to the Stonewall Inn’s home address.
People march in New York City during the first ever Pride parade. Image via CNNĪlongside fellow activists L.
In 2018 Sao Paolo held the world's largest Pride parade Martin, Howard is also credited with coining the "Pride" phrase which has since become synonymous with the LGBTQ community.
Howard also helped to extend Pride’s reach by coordinating a week-long series of events. The concept has since been adopted by LGBTQ communities across the globe and now encompasses a whole month. In 1999 President Bill Clinton officially declared June as Gay & Lesbian Pride Month.