Gay-friendly Philadelphia
Get Your History Straight and Your Nightlife Gay
What makes Philadelphia so memorable is its unique blend of experiences that you have to discover in person. By day, explore four centuries of history and architecture, quaint neighborhoods, remarkable museum collections and endless shopping. When the sun sets, the city heats up with acclaimed performing arts, candlelight tours, delectable dining and thriving nightlife. The fifth-largest city in the U.S., Philadelphia is easy to navigate and full of friendly people and hometown charm. We promise you an unforgettable visit.
The heart of activity, gay and otherwise, is Center City (the local term for downtown). Compact and easy-to-navigate streets place the city at your feet – literally. Bring comfortable shoes, because this town is made for walking. Getting to Philadelphia is almost as easy as getting around town once you arrive.
Just minutes outside of the city, Philadelphia’s countryside is full of rolling hills, historical battlefields, magnificent gardens and quaint villages to explore. New experiences abound in every direction, making the Philadelphia region the most dynamic destination in the United States.
City of Brotherly Love and Sisterly Affection
Philadelphia is known around the world as the birthplace of American independence and democracy, but the city boasts a long gay civil rights history as well. Some of the nation’s first gay rights protests — before the landmark Stonewall Riots in New York City — took place in front of Philadelphia’s Independence Hall in 1965.
In 2005, Pennsylvania became the first state to recognize GLBT history when it erected a historic marker at 6th and Chestnut Streets to commemorate those peaceful protests.
Now, visitors to Philadelphia’s Independence National Historical Park are reminded once again of the city’s history of tolerance, thanks to the historic marker.
Standing directly across the street from Independence Hall and the Liberty Bell Center at 6th and Chestnut Streets, the marker was erected to coincide with the 40th anniversary of the first Annual Reminder, a demonstration led by pioneering gay activists on July 4 from 1965 to 1969.
In July 2005, the Pennsylvania Historical and Museum Commission dedicated the blue and yellow marker, the first in the country to acknowledge gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender (GLBT) history.
The sign reads: “Annual public demonstrations for gay and lesbian equality. These peaceful protests and New York’s Stonewall riots in 1969 and Pride Parade in 1970, transformed a small national campaign into a civil rights movement.”
In 1975, Pennsylvania, under Governor Milton Shapp, was the first state to create an official governmental commission to look into the issues facing sexual minorities. In 1982, Philadelphia became one of the first cities in the country to pass an ordinance prohibiting discrimination based on sexual orientation. And Philadelphia’s 1997 domestic partners law was the first in the country to provide a tax break for gay and lesbian couples.
Today, Philadelphia’s gay community is active and influential in business, political and social circles. The community is represented both in state and city government. Special events for the gay community are plentiful throughout the year, and a long list of gay and lesbian athletic, social, cultural, religious and service organizations have active memberships.
Philadelphia’s gay media provide a voice within and for the community. The Philadelphia Gay News is one of the oldest and most respected gay newspapers in the United States and can be found in purple newspaper boxes on many downtown street corners. And the city’s two long-running gay and lesbian programs, Amazon Country and Q-zine, can be heard on public radio’s WXPN 88.5 FM.