On Sunday, April 25th, 1965, protesters in Philadelphia staged a sit-in in at Dewey's Restaurant after management began refusing service to homosexual patrons. The protest began when employees of Dewey’s Restaurant perceived that homosexual youth were patronizing the restaurant in such numbers as to discourage other customers from patronizing the restaurant. After attempting to discourage homosexual youth from congregating at the restaurant, management ordered employees to deny service to individuals they believed were homosexual. In response to this discriminatory treatment, activists organized a campaign that included as many as 150 protesters.
In 1987, activists John Cunningham and Heshie Zinman founded the AIDS Library of Philadelphia to provide health information to its community. This volunteer-run organization was the nation's first public lending library dedicated to HIV/AIDS, and sought to inform the public, address social fears and stigmas about the disease, support research, and advocate for social services and policy changes. The AIDS Library is now part of the Critical Path Learning Center, a program of Philadelphia FIGHT's Community Health Centers.
Giovanni's Room Bookstore was established by three members of the Gay Activist Alliance in 1973, making this the oldest LGBTQ+ bookstore that is still in operation in the United States. The founders selected the name as a reference to a gay-themed novel by writer James Baldwin. The bookstore has been called "the center of gay Philly" due to its importance as an early cultural hub for the LGBTQ+ community. During the height of the AIDS epidemic in the 1980s, self-published medical material from Giovanni's Bookstore played an instrumental role in educating people about the disease. On October 15, 2011, a historical marker for the groundbreaking bookstore- now known as PAT @ Giovanni's Room, was unveiled by the Pennsylvania Historical and Museum Commission.
From 1965 to 1969, gay rights activists from Washington, DC, New York, and Philadelphia met each July 4th to picket in front of Independence Hall to demand legislation that would protect the rights of LGBT citizens. The event came to be known as the “Annual Reminder” that many American citizens were denied the basic rights enshrined in the Declaration of Independence. The events were commemorated in 2005 with the dedication of this historical marker across the street from Independence Hall.
Often called the "Godmother of Rock 'n Roll" and the "original soul sister," gospel singer-songwriter Sister Rosetta Tharpe was famous for her spiritual lyrics, rhythm-and-blues musical style, and distorted electric guitar playing which later became iconic in the rock 'n roll genre. Tharpe influenced artists such as Elvis Presley, Johnny Cash, Chuck Berry, and Little Richard, and in recent years, many have rediscovered her music. After living in Richmond for a decade during the height of her career, Tharpe moved to Philadelphia in 1957. She was a first-generation resident of Philadelphia's Yorktown neighborhood where she lived in a house on Master Street until her death in 1973. On October 24, 2011, a historical marker was placed in front of the former music legend's home by the Pennsylvania Historical and Museum Commission. According to author Gayle Wald, Tharpe responded to claims about the "new" style of rock and roll by demonstrating that music, like everything else, has a history. "Oh, these kids and rock and roll," Tharpe exclaimed according to the author's accounts, "this is just sped up rhythm and blues."
This Tour is a Walking Tour.
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This extended walking tour includes a variety of landmarks and historical markers related to LGBTQ rights and culture in the city of Brotherhood Love. The tour begins at the location of what many consider to be the first sit-in for gay rights and proceeds to a historical marker dedicated to the history of the AIDS Library of Philadelphia among other stops.
