The Sip-In was the brainchild of the Mattachine Society, an early gay rights group. And in April 1966, three years before the famed riots at nearby Stonewall that many historians mark as the start of the modern LGBTQ rights movement, Julius’ was the site of a very different rebellion: a “Sip-In.” Not the iconic Stonewall Inn, but Julius’.Īt the corner of Waverly Place and West 10th Street, Julius’ is the oldest gay bar in New York City. Once, about a half a century ago, it found itself at the epicenter of an unprecedented protest asserting gay people’s right to gather in public spaces without police harassment. In the heart of the West Village, steps from the Christopher Street train station, stands a historic gay bar.
