even in istanbul where the governor of turkey's largest city banned pride activities citing security concerns. that didn't stop activists who took to the streets proudly waving their rainbow flags while police in rainbow gear stood by eventually firing rubber pellets to disperse the crowd. but the biggest gathering is in new york city where world pride is being held in the united states for the first time ever. the largest lgbtq celebration in the world. and this year it's not only honoring the sacrifices and achievements of the gay rights movements but also the 50th anniversary of the stonewall riots. >> i think the country overall support the gay community so much better nowadays than in those days. >> our society truly is doing what it needs to do naturally, which is to speak out, stand up, be who you are, love who you love. >> reporter: today marked the first pride celebration for nikki and her daughter madeleine. >> we moved up here from georgia, and this was definitely something, we're still not sure

she could have done if we hadn't moved from down south. >> madeleine came out to her family last year. mom nikki says she's been a longtime supporter of gay rights but now, it's personal. >> you know, i grew up around the bay area. we went to pride parades in san francisco a lot. you could feel connected on the outside somehow. this is not on the outside for us anymore. when it's your daughter. you know, it's right there. >> reporter: back on the streets of new york, this parade shows no signs of slowing down. when you hear from activists, this isn't really a parade as it is a march. when you hear from some of the people who have been caught in that struggle for quite some time here, including some of those who were there that night of that stonewall inn riot, it really does add more perspective. i want to introduce you to mark seagall. happy pride month. >> how are you doing? >> it's so good to have you

here. you were one of the original participants of those stoneball riots. 50 days -- 50 years and two days ago. being here, does this change the definition of pride for you? what does that mean for you? >> i went into that club that night terrified, scared. when i saw the violence in that bar, it scared me. when i got out on the street with my brothers and sisters and we saw visibility. we empowered each other. today at that point, there were maybe 75 to 100 of us that fought back that night. we were fighting for visibility for the first time. we were fighting for freedom. we were fighting from our oppression. take a look at us today. we are visible. we went from 50 to 75 to 100. three weeks later, we held our first march as gay liberation front. 400 of us. today there are just in new york alone 4 million. i think we've won the war of visibility. visibility is important because

it brings pride. pride is visibility. if you know who we are, you know that we're your uncles, aunts, brothers, sisters, cousins. we're no longer in the closet. we're human. this is who we want to be. >> what do you feel is the difference between -- [ inaudible ]. >> we're not equal yet. we don't have the equality yet. we're still second class citizens. today you can get arrested -- can't get married anywhere in this country. in 28 states you can still be fired the following day because you got married. we're second class citizens. we need to fight for lgbtq youth and trans and something no one talks about, our lgbtq seniors. i'm 68. the people i fought with at stonewall, they're our first generation of out seniors and many of them are being tossed

out of their own neighborhoods. neighborhoods they created. >> the importance of it happening in new york, what's the message you hope the rest of the world gets from this? i've seen very colorful folks today certainly but there is a message that shouldn't be lost in this celebration. what do you believe the message should know? >> the message of stonewall. we hear you out there in other places. we hear you in the middle east where they are beheading people. we hear you in istanbul where they won't let you have pride. we hear you in russia where they arrest you. we hear you. what we say to you is, we're your brothers and sisters. take pride. remember, pride means visibility. even if you have to fight back. even if it hurts. we fought back. we are with you. >> thank you so much for taking the time. the original stonewall participant. happy pride to you. and that's an important context to keep in mind. the celebration is massive but it really is more about what happened in this city over five decades ago, what happened not far from where i'm standing at

the stonewall inn and that galvanizing moment. >> thank you, polo, and mark. the stonewall riots served as the tipping point for the lgbtq community. here's a look at some of the major milestones since those historic days. in december 1973, the american psychiatric association removes homosexuality from its list of mental disorders in the diagnostic and statistical manual of mental disorders. january 1978, san francisco city supervisor harvey milk makes history becoming the first openly gay man to be elected to political office in california. but that victory is cut short when milk is murdered by a former colleague just ten months later. april 1997, stand-up comedian ellen degeneres shocks the world by appearing on the cover of "time" and declaring, yep, i'm

gay. april 26th, 2000, vermont becomes the first state to legalize civil unions between same-sex couples. and four years later, on may 17, 2004, the first legal same-sex marriage in the country takes place in massachusetts. in 2015, the fight for marriage equality makes it all the way to the u.s. supreme court. and on june 26th, the justices hand down a landmark verdict. >> the ruling today that same-sex marriage is a nationwide constitutional right, this is one of the greatest civil rights issues of our time. >> reporter: the 5-4 decision makes marriage equality the law of the land with the u.s. supreme court ruling that states cannot ban same-sex marriage. june 30th, 2016, a history-making moment from the u.s. military as defense secretary ash carter announces that the pentagon will no longer ban transgender people from

serving openly in the military. >> we have reason to be proud today of what this will mean for our military. because it's the right thing to do. and it's another step in ensuring that we continue to recruit and retain the most qualified people. >> that decision was later reversed by the trump administration. and another milestone for america, the first married gay presidential candidate. the intersection of pride and politics next. fact is, every insurance company hopes you drive safely.

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i just had to be here for this. and it just shows that, you know, the powers that be, can be negative, they can be forceful in their demeanor, but you cannot stop love. and that's what i'm getting out of today, and that's also hopefully what i'm putting into it. >> that new york parade well under way right now on fifth avenue. officials estimating some 4 million people taking part in the festivities. and as we mark pride month, let's take a look at the evolution of pride and the white house. bill clinton was the first president to officially recognize june as pride month in 1999. another proclamation wasn't issued until 2009 when president obama took over the oval office. and under his administration, the supreme court made gay marriage a right nationwide.

cnn senior national correspondent kyung lah takes a look at how 2020 democratic candidates are fighting for equality. >> it's probably going to happen in a few minutes. >> a short walk through san francisco's city hall -- >> information on the marriage license is true and correct to the best of your knowledge? >> i do. >> reporter: ended a nine-year journey for chris perry and sandy spear. >> today we witness not only the joining of chris and sandy but the realization of their dream. >> reporter: the first same-sex couple to marry after an historic 2013 supreme court decision. >> we saw kamala harris run to greet us. she was full of energy and smiling and embracing us and saying congratulations. this is going to be the best day ever. >> by virtue of the power and authority -- >> reporter: then california's attorney general, she officiated their wedding.

>> i now declare you spouses for life. >> reporter: believing it was unconstitutional, harris had chosen not to defend proposition 8. the state's law prohibiting same-sex marriage. >> any day that justice is delayed, i would suggest justice is denied. >> reporter: and helped forge the legal path to this moment. >> had she defended that law, what would have happened to marriage equality in this country? >> we would not have had her marry us. she played a pivotal role. >> reporter: from long time supporters like harris -- >> and to chasten, my love -- i'm pretty fond of him, too. >> reporter: two newcomers on the national stage like mayor pete buttigieg, the first gay contender with a serious shot at winning a major party nomination. >> there's no going back to normal. don't listen to anybody in either party who says we can

just go back to what we were doing. because we in the lgbtq community know when we hear phrases like make america great again, that that american past was never quite as great as advertised. >> reporter: there's a reason why the 2020 democratic hopefuls are courting these voters. >> in 2020, characterize the power of the lgbtq vote. >> there are 10 million lgbtq voters across this country. and we're not just a powerful voting bloc. we're a voting bloc that turns out. >> reporter: in 2020, faces numerous choices says chris with the human rights campaign. one after the other, the candidates have spoken before the nation's largest lgbtq advocacy group talking about their records, digging deep to stand out. >> nearly every single one of them on the democratic side stands for equality. speaks out consistently for equality. that is remarkable. it shows how far we have come as a country. >> reporter: joe biden represents a part of that

evolution. in 2012, biden jumped ahead of president obama on marriage equality on national television. >> i am absolutely comfortable with the fact that men marrying men, women marrying women and heterosexual men and women marrying are entitled to the same rights, all the civil rights and liberties. >> reporter: staunch backers of bernie sanders say his support dates back to the '70s in an editorial he wrote. he called to abolish all laws dealing with homosexuality. in the '90s engaged in fierce debates in defending gay members of the military. >> the same people that would vote to cut defense $177 billion, the same ones that would put homos in the military -- >> you have insulted thousands of men and women who have put their lives on the -- >> i'm talking about you and liberals like you that keep -- >> reporter: ahead of pride month, elizabeth warren and beto o'rourke laid out latformed that include passing a federal law

that includes protecting lgbtq americans from discrimination. a measure kristen gillibrand also supports. gillibrand highlights her plans, rolling back trump administration restrictions on transgender troops serving in the military and halting t taxpayer funded adoption centers from discriminating against gay couples. sandy and chris witnessed and live through progress. hopeful their marriage was one but not the last step towards equal rights. >> we have more solidarity than we ever have. and now we just have to take that solidarity and make it impactful in this next election. >> i'm live in san francisco above the pride celebration. organizers estimate hundreds of thousands of people are taking part in this event. among them is senator kamala harris. she's riding in a car that's being driven by sandy and chris,

the couple who she married. they say it is full circle to be driving her around in this event because they are giving back now to a woman who made such a pivotal move in their lives. >> right in her own backyard. kyung lah, thank you so much. all right. still ahead -- we look at a crowning achievement for lgbtq people. the right to marry. i talk to a man whose supreme court case made it happen.

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welcome back to our special coverage of the stonewall riots in new york which was a catalyst for the gay rights movement and the major milestones that followed. four years ago this month, the united states took its biggest step yet for lgbtq rights. >> usa! usa! >> this was the moment the u.s. supreme court ruled in favor of same-sex marriage nationwide. that ruling came nearly 46 years to the day of the stonewall riots. jim is the man whose case made it to the u.s. supreme court and ultimately led to the court's decision. his fight started after his spouse, john arthur, died in 2013. and from then on, jim struggled to be recognized as arthur's

spouse on his death certificate. and jim is joining me right now. good to see you. >> thank you so much for having me and happy pride to everyone. >> happy pride to you. so what does today feel like to you? >> you know, today is just one of those wonderful days where we can all take a step back and recognize and remember that there were so many people who came before us. those people who really put everything on the line, their entire lives on the line to stand up, say we exist, and we deserve better. and for me, that's what the stonewall 50th is all about. it's recognizing and remembering and honoring those many brave people. and as well, you know, it's hard for me not to always be happy and enjoy when june rolls around, especially june 26th and the anniversary of marriage equality. >> of course, you among the brave. so take me back to that day when the u.s. supreme court made that

5-4 ruling. what was that feeling like for you? how did you react? what was going through your mind, and were you thinking about the reach? how it would change so many lives? >> you know, even before the decision was announced, i became very, obviously, aware of how far this was reaching and the impact it would have on people. so that day, sitting in the courtroom and once it finally really hit me that we won, i burst into tears with a lot of people around that courtroom. of course, the first thing i thought was john. i missed him and wished he was there to experience that. but then the other amazing feeling, i realized it was the first time in my life as an out gay man that i felt like an equal american. and that was a beautiful moment. but then to go out in front of that courthouse and to walk through that crowd, i mean, the

air was electric with people singing, cheering, crying. that was an amazing moment of just unbridled joy and community and hope. it was an unbelievable experience for me that day. >> and then, of course, punctuated by another pinch-me moment when you had a phone conversation with then-president barack obama. and it actually happened live on cnn. so let's look at that moment again. >> i figured when i saw you that we were going to be hoping for some good news, and we did. i just wanted to say congratulations. >> so much, sir. i think it was your wishes. >> your leadership on this, you know, has changed the country. really proud of you and, you know, just know that, you know, not only have you been a great example for people, but you're

also going to, you know, bring about a lasting change to this country. it's pretty rare when that happens. >> so much of the world watched that live as it was happening. so what is it like for you now to relive that moment, you know, of what you were feeling like and how that victory was underscored by the president? >> you know, i never in my wildest dreams thought i would get a phone call from the president and for president obama to call me and to just say thank you, you helped make our world a better place. i mean, that isn't something i ever, ever thought would happen. and the fact that it was president obama, someone who was such an advocate, such a supporter of our community made that even more important and more meaningful to me. you know, i just have the utmost respect for him and the fact he went out of his way to call me that day is something i'll never forget.

>> fantastic. jim obergefell, thank you so much and thank you for your courage. >> absolutely. thanks, fredricka. and thank you, everyone, for being with us for this cnn special "pride & progress." i'm fredricka whit field. have a great rest of the evening. happy pride, and a great week. ♪

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you're live in the cnn newsroom. i'm anna cabrera in new york. the world is a different place right now than it was just a few hours ago. president trump and his penchant for extraordinary television moments unquestionably made one happen as he tells it, it was his idea. while at the korean demilitarized zone he'd already be about 100 miles from pyongyang. why not send a message to the leader of north korea. a tweet to kim jong-un to join him for a handshake and a chat. well, nobody knew if it would happen, until it did. kim jong-un