Imagine yourself enjoying time with friends in a small bar in New York and, without warning, joyous moments are unceremoniously interrupted by police.  The atmosphere instantly is transformed to what feels like a battlefield.  Several of your friends are taken to jail. The entire neighborhood is seemingly engaged in the conflict, and days of continued disruption follow.  The Stonewall Riots in 1969 launched a movement which resulted in continued activitism for civil rights within the LGBTQ+ community and increased social acceptance, creating pockets of a greater sense of belonging across the nation. Philadelphia and its residents have also been central to this movement with the first gay rights demonstrations in the US occurring right outside Independence Hall every July 4th from 1965 to 1969 and thus, preceding the Stonewall riots.  June is also a time to acknowledge and celebrate the Supreme Court decisions that have advanced equality for the LGBTQ+ community, such as the Obergefell decision, which legalized same sex marriage, and the Bostock ruling,  which facilitated the care of transgender patients by hospitals. Sparked by conflict, Pride Month has evolved to a time for reflection, recommitment, and celebration.  Read more: https://www.med.upenn.edu/inclusion-and-diversity/pride-2022.html