Last night I walked into a historic place. I'm in New York City and I was walking down Christopher Street and there it was, The Stonewall Inn. Stonewall is known as the birthplace of the modern gay rights movement. I stepped inside the small bar and immediately felt the energy of all the gay men and women for whom the bar was a refuge over the years. Especially in the 1950s and 60s, gay bars were the only place gays and lesbians could be free to be themselves. But even the gay bars were not a haven. Police would regularly raid the bars and arrest people on trumped up charges. One day in 1969 the patrons of The Stonewall Inn decided they weren't going to take the police harassment anymore. The patrons of The Stonewall Inn fought back. The resulting riot is considered the birth of the modern gay rights movement.