PENNSYLVANIA, June 24 - vital to the growing tolerance and acceptance of the LGBTQ+

community; and

WHEREAS, In May 1965, borrowing a strategy made famous by the

African-American civil rights movement of the time, a group of

gender-variant individuals of color organized a sit-in to

protest discrimination toward LGBTQ+ individuals at Dewey's

restaurant lunch counter in Philadelphia, recognized as one of

the first demonstrations launched with the goal of protecting

the dignity of LGBTQ+ people; and

WHEREAS, The "Annual Reminders" protests held in front of the

Liberty Bell, which occurred every Independence Day between 1965

and 1969, drew national attention to the LGBTQ+ community's

struggle for liberty and equality; and

WHEREAS, Dewey's restaurant lunch counter and "Annual

Reminders" demonstrations, in conjunction with other activities

across the United States, greatly contributed toward the growing

acceptance and inclusion of LGBTQ+ Americans into their

respective communities; and

WHEREAS, The State government has traditionally been on the

forefront of LGBTQ+ recognition, regardless of which political

party was in control; and

WHEREAS, The Honorable Milton Shapp, former Governor of

Pennsylvania, founded the Council for Sexual Minorities, which

was the first governmental body in the nation to examine the

needs and issues of the LGBTQ+ community; and

WHEREAS, In 1975, Governor Shapp issued the first Statewide

executive order in the nation recognizing LGBTQ+ equality; and

WHEREAS, Governor Shapp's successor, the Honorable Richard

Thornburgh, became the first Republican in the nation to issue a

Statewide proclamation recognizing LGBTQ+ equality in 1979; and

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