How a police raid sparked L.A.'s Black Cat protests — which predated Stonewall and birthed The Advocate
Angelenos rose up against police brutality at a gay bar in Los Angeles's Silver Lake neighborhood.
December 26, 2025
CONTACTAbout UsCAREER OPPORTUNITIESADVERTISE WITH USPRIVACY POLICYPRIVACY PREFERENCESTERMS OF USELEGAL NOTICE
© 2025 Equal Entertainment LLC.
All Rights reserved
All Rights reserved
By continuing to use our site, you agree to our Privacy Policy and Terms of Use.
black cat
Revisiting the Black Cat
In 1967 the world forever changed for LGBTs, whether they knew it then or not, with a momentous night at an unassuming gay bar in Los Angeles.
February 17, 2012
Revisiting the Black Cat
In 1967 the world forever changed for LGBTs, whether they knew it then or not, with a momentous night at an unassuming gay bar in Los Angeles.
February 17, 2012
Appreciating Another Black Cat
For #blackcatappreciationday, we remember Los Angeles's Black Cat bar, site of a pre-Stonewall gay rights protest.
August 17, 2016
Before Stonewall, There Was The Black Cat Protest
The organizer of the 1967 Black Cat protest, Alexei Romanoff recalls the details of the watershed moment for LGBTQ rights.
October 29, 2018
Black Cat Shows Protest Makes Progress
The man who organized a protest 50 years ago against police brutality was thanked publicly by police.
February 12, 2017
Documentary Ensures We Don't Forget the Black Cat
A brutal police raid sparked The Advocate and a national movement — watch a recreation from the upcoming doc, A Long Road to Freedom: The Advocate Celebrates 50 Years.
July 18, 2018
Rally on Saturday to Remember the Black Cat's Place in History
A rally is being held on Saturday to remember the historic Los Angeles protest against police harassment and homophobia 50 years ago at The Black Cat Tavern. The moment pre-dates Stonewall by two years and led to founding The Advocate -- the official newsletter of the movement it sparked.
February 10, 2017
Organizer of Black Cat Protests Will Be L.A. Pride Grand Marshal
Alexei Romanoff helped organize the 1967 protests of a police raid on the Los Angeles gay bar.
May 11, 2017
50 Years After the Black Cat Demonstration: Protest Works
Editor in chief Lucas Grindley takes a lesson from how The Advocate originated at the Black Cat.
February 14, 2017
L.A. Pride Honored Stonewall, But Don’t Forget, Black Cat Was First
The West Coast celebration remembered Los Angeles's own place in the history and future of the LGBTQ movement.
June 10, 2019
Watch Lyft's Touching Short Film About Black Cat Protest's Legacy
The protest's importance to LGBT people is recalled by the man who organized it, Alexei Romanoff.
June 29, 2017
Pioneering LGBT Rights Activist Alexei Romanoff: 'These Marchers Are My Family'
"This is my family. All of them. Look at the diversity," the 1967 Black Cat demonstration organizer told reporters at L.A.'s Resist March on Sunday.
June 11, 2017
10 queer slang words that defined the internet in 2025
The dictionary wishes it were this gay.
November 6, 2025
13 Vintage Photos of Los Angeles's Queer Pride from ONE Archives
The City of Angels was having its own LGBTQ+ awakening years before Stonewall.
June 2, 2023
‘Let’s get to business’: ranking the top 10 stars and their best quotes from DNC 2024
Everything from McDonald's to childless cat ladies, Black jobs, Fox News, and first impressions.
August 23, 2024
30 Infamous Police Raids of Gay Bars and Bathhouses
Crackdowns by law enforcement have shaped the LGBTQ+ rights movement in the U.S. and worldwide.
March 1, 2017
Los Angeles becomes one of the first cities to recognize National Coming Out Day
The city voted on Friday to recognize the LGBTQ+ holiday first celebrated in 1988.
October 14, 2024
Los Angeles Rally Tonight Will Speak to History and to Trump
The rally will remember an LGBT protest 50 years ago that made a lasting difference.
February 11, 2017