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Edward KocheEdward Koche
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Session:         Page of 617

Okay. All right. But in Congress, that's when the gay rights movement really started. You know, it started at the Stonewall. I don't know what year that was -- '68, '69 -- at the Stonewall. Do you know the story of the Stonewall? The Stonewall was a private homosexual club, and at that time it was not permissible to have legitimate gay bars. You were subject to police extortion and they were Mafia-owned or they had a piece of many of them. At least that was the reputation. So the Stonewall (there was a very good story in the Village Voice on that episode -- I think it was Howard Smith who wrote it; that's my recollection) was invaded by the police. A private club -- they came in, and the gays fought back. I mean it was like the Warsaw Ghetto, (laughs) with the Jews rising up. And they fought back, and it was incredible. And they date their movement, in terms of strength and so forth, from that period. In fact, they celebrate annually with a parade that begins in Sheridan Square on the anniversary of the Stonewall uprising.

I'll just give you a little episode about that. This last year when they had their parade, they're negotiating for permits; and they march up 6th Avenue, and they wanted to form in Sheridan Square on the west side of 7th Avenue on Christopher Street. It happens there's a church there, and the pastor of that church is the minister of the fire department, and the fire department is very anti-gay. You may remember Michael





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