Stonewall

Twenty-five years ago, the gay rights movement was born in a wild, late-night melee between police and a group of patrons at the Stonewall, a seedy gay bar in New York City's Greenwich Village. The police had come to the Stonewall that night prepared to do what they had done many times previously: roust the clientele, intimidate, harass and humiliate those present and pack anyone who looked the least bit suspicious or disreputable off to jail in the waiting paddy wagons.To this day, no one knows why that particular July night turned out so differently; why instead of meekly playing out what by then had become a well-rehearsed script of cringing resignation followed by abject submission, the Stonewall's customers turned on their tormentors with a fury.

I sat stunned on Wednesday as Secretary of State Hillary Clinton asked a congressional panel "what difference, at this point, does it make?" who was at fault for the deaths of four Americans killed during the terrorist attack on our diplomats in Benghazi, Libya ("Clinton grilled on Benghazi," Jan. 24. The reality is that it was known shortly after the attack that al-Qaeda militiamen had carried out the killings and that both before and during the...

On November 14, 2003 STONEWALL JACKSON SISK, beloved husband of the late Jane Sisk (nee Fant) devoted father of Sheila Frech and the late Steven Sisk, dear brother of Doris Baumgardner, Francis Fell and the late Ada Anderson, Robert, Aden, Charles and Wood Sisk. Also survived by six grandchildren and two great-grandsons. Friends may call at the Kirkley-Ruddick Funeral Home P.A., 421 Crain Hwy S.E., Glen Burnie on Monday from 3 to 5 and 7 to 9 P.M. where funeral services will be held on Tuesday at 11 A.M. Interment Glen Haven Memorial Park.

There's a long back-story to Maryland's official recognition of the Piscataway as a distinct tribe of Native American people, and it's not pretty. Last week's announcement of the long-sought declaration in Annapolis marked an end to both the state's stubborn refusal to recognize any native tribe - largely to stop its members from opening a casino here - and to a dispute between Piscataway groups that got so bitter, they even bickered over bones. In the 1990s, Maryland and other states went through the process of removing native bones from museums and offering them for reburial.

"Stonewall," which opens today at the Charles, turns out not to be a documentary about the key event in gay history, a riot that broke out in the late summer of 1969 when New York vice cops pulled one of their customary nocturnal raids on a Greenwich Village drag bar, the Stonewall Inn.Rather, it's a fictionalization of that event, following the tangled lives of several of the men who took part in the uprising, using the violence of the moment as a contrast to the emotional lives of the individuals.

THROUGH the month of June, in most major cities around the nation, hundreds of thousands of lesbians and gay men are commemorating 25 years of resistance and struggle against those who wish to deny us equal rights. The culminating event, a demonstration surrounding the United Nations building in New York on June 26, will remind those in power around the world that basic freedoms and dignity are still denied to gay men and lesbians.However, change has indeed occurred since patrons of the Stonewall Inn took to the streets of Sheridan Square in New York City around 1 a.m. on June 28, 1969, to protest a seemingly routine police raid of yet another gay bar. That night, those inside and outside the bar resisted; for several days afterward, they protested their treatment and began to organize to change a society that had made their very lives illegal.

NEW YORK -- Twenty-five years ago this month, Anthony Coron went to a gay bar in Greenwich Village to celebrate having come to terms with his sexuality. By the end of the evening, however, the 27-year-old Wall Street employee was standing in the street throwing objects at the police -- and participating in what would later be called the birth of the gay rights movement.It was June 28, 1969, when police raided the Stonewall Inn, a dingy bar and dance floor. Such raids were routine then. But this night was different: The men and women at Stonewall fought back.

Adamp, gray chill hangs in the air, the Stonewall sign is broken and sagging and a For Sale sign flaps against the Formstone building at 1212 S. Charles St. as state Sen. George W. Della Jr. pushes the door open and steps into a political twilight zone. The Stonewall Democratic Club - a last survivor from Baltimore's rich tradition of neighborhood political clubs - is holding an open house from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. today for people interested in buying the clubhouse that has been its headquarters for more than 75 years.

Forty years ago this weekend, New York City police carried out another routine raid on a gay bar in Greenwich Village, even though the Mafia owners had dutifully paid the customary $2,000-a-week bribe to the local precinct. But something went wrong that night at the Stonewall Inn. Around 1 a.m. June 28, as some patrons were ushered out to the paddy wagon, others who had been inside, or just passing by, began to taunt the police. Coins were flung at the cops, a rude reference to the payoffs everyone knew about.

Sunday's Travel section incorrectly stated the battle in which Confederate Gen. Thomas J. "Stonewall" Jackson died. He was shot accidentally by one of his men at Chancellorsville, Va.The Sun regrets the error.

Forty years ago this weekend, New York City police carried out another routine raid on a gay bar in Greenwich Village, even though the Mafia owners had dutifully paid the customary $2,000-a-week bribe to the local precinct. But something went wrong that night at the Stonewall Inn. Around 1 a.m. June 28, as some patrons were ushered out to the paddy wagon, others who had been inside, or just passing by, began to taunt the police. Coins were flung at the cops, a rude reference to the payoffs everyone knew about.

In assembling a case against a group accused of beating a passenger aboard a city bus, police had to sort through conflicting statements from middle school students who appeared streetwise beyond their years. In interrogation rooms, detectives faced off against recalcitrant children as young as 14 who remained defiant even as interrogators threatened them with adult charges and warned that their friends might be giving them up in a room next door. One 14-year-old boy repeatedly told a Maryland Transit Administration Police sergeant that he saw the fight on the No. 27 bus in Hampden but couldn't name the people involved.

The Harford County Development Advisory Committee serves as a forum for the review of subdivision and site plans submitted to the Department of Planning and Zoning by those seeking building permits. The committee will review the following proposals at 9 a.m. Wednesday in the second-floor conference room of the Harford County government building, 220 S. Main St., Bel Air: Brenda T. Hince Location: Southwest corner of Coen Road and Old Rocks Road. Developer: Brenda T. Hince/Highland Survey Associates Inc. Description: Create one residential lot, 16.378 acres.

The former home of the Stonewall Democratic Club - a Federal Hill political institution - suffered moderate damage yesterday after a fire broke out, overwhelming the Formstone building in smoke and flames. At about 7:30 p.m., city firefighters were dispatched to the fire at 1212 S. Charles Street, said Chief Kevin Cartwright, a Baltimore Fire Department spokesman. "The whole building was engulfed in smoke and heavy fire in the rear," said Baltimore Fire Captain Ray Ryan at the scene of the fire.

KITCHEN TIP Create a makeshift panini press by heating a sandwich in a large, heavy skillet over moderately high heat and placing a smaller skillet or saucepan (with a clean bottom) on top. Weigh the top skillet down with a large can of soup or beans. Cook sandwiches until golden on the bottom, 3 to 4 minutes, then repeat on the other side. From "Stonewall Kitchen Favorites," by Jonathan King, Jim Stott and Kathy Gunst innrecipes.com Fall is the time for getting away to a rustic country inn for leaf-peeping, afternoon tea and fantastic breakfasts.

Adamp, gray chill hangs in the air, the Stonewall sign is broken and sagging and a For Sale sign flaps against the Formstone building at 1212 S. Charles St. as state Sen. George W. Della Jr. pushes the door open and steps into a political twilight zone. The Stonewall Democratic Club - a last survivor from Baltimore's rich tradition of neighborhood political clubs - is holding an open house from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. today for people interested in buying the clubhouse that has been its headquarters for more than 75 years.

Walls intended to hold earth in place are tricky constructions requiring careful design, but they are much simpler to build these days than in the past.Retaining walls are used to beautify landscapes as well as prevent soil erosion, and they help make sloping or hilly land usable.Helping to simplify construction of the walls are modular concrete-block systems that require no mortar and generally have built-in alignment systems.Mortarless blocks are available in a variety of sizes and designs and colors, and can produce retaining walls of symmetry and beauty.

On December 8, 2003, ENOSE MORRIS; loving brother of Eartie, Willie Ann, Janie, Ora, Magnolia and Stonewall Morris. Friends may call at the family owned MARCH FUNERAL HOME WEST, INC., 4300 Wabash Avenue, on Friday after 9, where family will receive friends on Saturday, at 11:30, followed by funeral services at 12. See www.marchfh.com

WASHINGTON - Pressure mounted on baseball to toughen its steroid-testing regimen, as the White House yesterday urged "strong steps" to combat the drugs and a well-placed senator said it was time for the players union to end its history of "stonewalling." "The president has made it very clear that he believes Major League Baseball needs to act to address the problem," White House press secretary Scott McClellan said at his daily press briefing. "Players who use drugs undermine the efforts of parents and coaches to send the right message to our children.

CHICAGO -- Modern cancer treatments have saved countless lives, but they can be a cruelly mixed blessing. Chemotherapy, often indispensable in curing cancer, sometimes is enough to make you ill, causing violent nausea and vomiting. Luckily, there is a well-established and safe remedy recommended by many cancer physicians that sometimes provides relief when nothing else can. Not so luckily, the remedy is marijuana. Under federal law, cannabis is forbidden -- even for therapeutic use by seriously ill people who have no more interest in getting high than they do in bungee jumping.