John,
This month and for eternity after that, Black Lives Matter Global Network Foundation celebrates the beauty of Pride and all of our LGBTQ+ fam.
To our LGBTQ+ fam: You are radiance, you are divine, you are life itself. Own it!
Every year, Pride month rolls around, and we celebrate the colorful beauty of our LGBTQ+ community. But we must not forget to also recognize the discrimination, hate, and violence our family continues to face today at the intersection of their identities -- and how the fight for LGBTQ+ equality goes in hand-in-hand with #DefundThePolice.
Pride began as an uprising against police in the early hours of June 28, 1969. Police in New York City violently raided the Stonewall Inn, a gay club that was a place of refuge for many queer Black and Brown folks. Police raids of gay spaces were common. But this time, fed up with the constant police violence against them, the patrons of Stonewall fought back in what came to be known as the historic Stonewall Uprising.
The language may have been different then, but the sentiment remains the same: #DefundThePolice.
This Pride month and beyond, we're dedicated to the fight for LGBTQ+ civil rights and equality. Because
all Black Lives Matter.
In love and solidarity,
Black Lives Matter Global Network Foundation
