There is No Shubert Theatre in San Francisco

Pick a street corner in downtown Hamtramck, Mich., and you’ll be struck by the incredible mix of cultures crammed into this tiny, 2-square-mile city.

A Catholic church across the street from a mosque. Polish pastry shops, sausage factories, and grocery stores promising “the best Polish food, shipping to Eastern Europe,” side by side with Bengali clothing shops that sell richly embroidered dresses and headscarves. And you’d be remiss if you didn’t stop in the many Yemeni restaurants serving fragrant lamb and discs of flatbread the size of hubcaps.

What has united all of the immigrant groups who’ve come to Hamtramck? Good jobs in the auto industry. Hamtramck is surrounded by Detroit, and for decades, car manufacturing was its lifeblood.

Hamtramck, Michigan: An Evolving City Of Immigrants

Marsha P. Johnson

A leader of the Stonewall Riots. According to several eyewitnesses, Marsha was the one who “really started it”. She was “in the middle of the whole thing, screaming and yelling and throwing rocks and almost like Molly Pitcher in the Revolution or something”

Dedicated her life to activism:

Co-founded the Street Transvestite Action Revolutionaries (later renamed Street Transgender Action Revolutionaries)

Ensured that the young drag queens, trans women and other street kids on Christopher Street were fed and clothed. Marsha also housed them whenever she could. 

In the 1980s, she was an activist and organizer in ACT UP. 

Stormé DeLarverie

Also a leader in the Stonewall Riots - has been identified as the “butch lesbian that threw the first punch” against the police officers.

Several eye-witnesses recollections also recognize her as the cross-dressing lesbian that yelled “why don’t you guys do something” at the bystanders that evoked the reaction from them that helped make Stonewall a defining moment in history.

Unofficially worked at gay bars who otherwise couldn’t afford security.

Bayard Rustin

Was a leading strategist of the U.S. Civil Rights Movement between 1955-1968:

The formidable behind the scenes figure of the civil rights movement who organized the March on Washington

Through his influence, the civil rights leadership adopted a non-violent stance.

Is and was often overlooked in African-American history because of the public’s discomfort with his sexual orientation.

Supported LGBTQ rights and movements.

Was posthumously awarded Rustin the Presidential Medal of Freedom by President Barack Obama.

Miss Major Griffin-Gracy

Another leader in the Stonewall Riots.

Has been involved in community efforts since 1978. She has worked at local food banks, provide services for trans women suffering from addiction or homelessness. During the AIDS epidemic she also provided healthcare and funeral services.

Is currently serving as the Executive Director for the Transgender GenderVariant Intersex Justice Project, working to assist transgender persons who are disproportionately incarcerated under a prison-industrial complex.

Alvin Ailey

At the young age of 22, Alvin AIley became Artistic Directer for the Horton Dance Company where he choreographed as well as directed scenes and costume designs.

Formed the Alvin Ailey American Dance Theatre in 1958 but continued to choreograph for other companies.

Ailey’s signature works prominently reflects his Black pride.

Is credited for popularizing modern dance. 

Was also posthumously awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom by President Barack Obama.

They sure don’t market cars like this anymore! This 1937 Pontiac Drive Safety Game was distributed by Pontiac dealers as a way to promote the company’s cars. The board game also came with the added bonus of driver safety lessons. After playing this game, you’ll definitely remember that liquor violations could put you in jail and to slow down in school zones.