MILWAUKEE, Wisconsin — While the lot that sits at 400 N. Plankinton is empty now, the bar that stood there 60 years ago was a hub for Milwaukee's LGBTQ Community.
Now, the neighborhood is underneath the freeway bridges, but it didn't use to look like that.
“There was really, for lack of a better word, a gaybourhood, flourishing here in the 400 block of N. Plankiton in the mid-40s," said Michail Takach, a Wisconsin LGBTQ historian.
One of those gay bars was the Black Nite. According to Takach, it was one of the few bars in Milwaukee at the time that allowed people to come in gender-non-conforming clothing.
While its run was short, only two years, its impact is still felt by the LGBTQ community today.
The night that is remembered most, is August 5, 1961. That's when, as Takach explains, a group of four servicemen decided to make trouble at the bar on a dare.
"When you're running a gay bar in 1961, you know what trouble looks like," Takach said.
Takach explains there was a brawl between the bouncer, the owner, and the servicemen.
"That's when suddenly the door flew open and there was his girlfriend with a beer bottle in each hand saying alright let's go," Takach said.
The owner's girlfriend was Josie Carter, a Black Trans woman who was well-known in her community.
After the initial four servicemen left, Takach says they came back with more friends. But so did Josie.
A bigger fight broke out and the bar was wrecked, but the fight sent a message. The incident was dubbed the Black Nite Uprising.
"She said we don't run from a fight, we're not running anymore. And people heard this and they suddenly realized this was a choice," Takach says.
LGBTQ activist and community adviser with the Wisconsin LGBTQ History Project, Ricardo Wynn says the moment was important.
"Josie Carter being a Black woman, a Black queen standing up to injustices for our community is something that we never knew as a community," Wynn said.
Wynn remembers hearing the little-known story for the first time.
"When I heard about it I was like, what?!, I was so surprised and so shocked about it," Wynn said. "Wow, this is our Black Stonewall."
That's why he's helping to plan the celebration on August 5, the 63rd anniversary of the uprising. For Wynn, this historic landmark isn't just about that night.
"Black gay history is Black history," Wynn said. "Justice can be served when people collaborate together and stand up for each other."
To Takach, it shows just how much one person can do to impact history.
"The right person at the right moment in time making the right decision can change history," Takach said. "And Josie Carter certainly did that that night."
The celebration will be on August 5 at the site of the Black Nite. For more information visit their website.
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