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On Stonewall anniversary, Twin Cities Pride expects another big crowd

Fifty years after a pivotal LGBTQ civil rights protest, Twin Cities Pride expects at least 300,000 this weekend

MINNEAPOLIS - Long before he opened his Rainbow Road gift store in Loring Park, Jim Connelly was just an 18-year-old kid from Rochester, Minn., watching from a distance as riots erupted in New York City in June 1969.

The New York City Police Department had raided a gay bar named the Stonewall Inn, yet another example of discriminatory policing for which the department has since apologized. With frustrations festering, the community finally grew tired of everything — so they staged an uprising that drew worldwide attention.

"Now, here we are, 50 years later," Connelly said. "The people coming out, the people comfortable with their life, (it) is certainly different than when I was a boy."

Stonewall, as it's now known, would eventually be credited as the catalyst for a half-century of LGBTQ civil rights activism.

And it paved away for events like Twin Cities Pride, the largest free Pride event in the U.S., with 300,000 to 400,000 expected to participate in events throughout the weekend in Minneapolis. Although it may not match the half-million attendance record of 2013 following the passage of marriage equality in Minnesota, the crowd should be extra lively and vibrant as it commemorates the landmark events of June 1969.  

"This year," Connelly said, "will be bigger than most."

The Stonewall anniversary also coincides with World Pride in New York City next weekend — the first time the event has ever been held on American soil. For that reason, Twin Cities Pride moved its event up one weekend. 

Darcie Baumann, the Twin Cities Pride board chair, said this year's event will feature a history pavilion to teach visitors about LGBTQ history like Stonewall. 

"It was really that movement," Baumann said, "that drew attention to our cause."

Although Twin Cities Pride events will seem familiar to visitors on Friday and Saturday, they may notice a fairly significant change to Sunday's parade. Due to construction, the route will now begin at 2nd Avenue South and 3rd Street South, making its way toward the Convention Center and finally to the end point near Loring Park.

The parade will conclude just feet from Rainbow Road, the gay gift shop Jim Connelly opened in 1996.

"We'll be watching the parade through 50 to 100 customers standing at my store," Connelly said. "I'm the only retailer in town that has two Christmases: One in June and one at Christmas."

And this year, his second Christmas falls on the anniversary of an event that changed history for the LGBTQ community.

"This is a huge year," Connelly said, "and I think it's only going to get better as we go forward."

Details on the Pride parade route can be found in the video below.

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