Over the last fifty years, the story of what took place at the Stonewall Inn in the sweltering early hours of June 28, 1969, has become more legend and lore than verifiable fact.
The first recorded archival accounts by those who were there didn’t take place until twenty years later with the audio documentary, Remembering Stonewall.
StoryCorps has preserved the historic accounts of those events and this year also launched an effort to record the stories of the LGBTQ Community through its app.
Thirty years after the firsthand stories were recorded, filmmakers Fenton Bailey and Randy Barbato have brought them to life in Stonewall Outloud.
Narrated by RuPaul, the film honors the past by bringing it into the present and reminds everyone how vital the actions taken that night became to the LGBTQ Community.
Lawrence Pfeil Jr. of TheOUTFront.com attended a special screening of the film at the Stonewall Inn in New York City on Wednesday night.
Pfeil reports “a capacity crowd was transfixed listening to the words of those who had paved the way for them” as some of today’s most recognizable LGBTQ talent (Lance Bass, Daniel Franzese, Michael Turchin, Charlie Carver, Laith Ashley and more) channeled their spirit.
Journalist Michael Musto hosted a Q & A after the screening with Bailey and featured Stonewall veteran (and Stonewall Inn bartender), Fredd E. “Tree” Sequoia.
“Stories are not just a community’s history; it is their pride,” writes Pfeil of Stonewall Outloud. “If we find time to listen to each other’s stories, we’d learn they are also our joy.”
