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Stonewall Inn Named National Monument, a First for the Gay Rights Movement
The Stonewall Inn has been called the symbolic heart of New York City’s lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender community for decades, since the police raid and ensuing protests there in 1969 helped galvanize a national struggle for gay rights.
On Friday, President Obama formally recognized that history, declaring the Greenwich Village bar and its surrounding area the Stonewall National Monument, and creating the first National Park Service unit dedicated to the gay rights movement.
According to the White House, the monument designation will consist of 7.7 acres, protecting the tavern, Christopher Park across the street, and several other streets and sidewalks where spontaneous protests were held for equal rights in 1969.
“The Stonewall Uprising is considered by many to be the catalyst that launched the modern L.G.B.T. civil rights movement,” President Obama wrote in a proclamation announcing the monument’s establishment. “From this place and time, building on the work of many before, the nation started the march — not yet finished — toward securing equality and respect for L.G.B.T. people.”
Officials are now seeking to raise money for National Park Service personnel, a temporary ranger station, a visitor center and exhibits.
In the wake of the mass shooting at a gay bar in Orlando, Fla., this month, the designation comes at a momentous and emotional moment for lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender groups in New York City and nationwide.
Advocates and activists describe the Stonewall as a regular meeting place that people gravitate toward in times of strife, pain or celebration for the gay community. After the Orlando tragedy, emotional vigils were held outside to honor the victims. Almost a year ago, the area erupted in joy when the Supreme Court ruled to legalize same-sex marriage.
Thousands are expected to flock to the neighborhood in celebration this weekend, in the gay pride march. The annual parade on Sunday will travel down Christopher Street and past the bar.
Advocates have worked to create a national park near the Stonewall Inn for years. In May, dozens of people testified at a hearing in the West Village in support of the proposal, many speaking personally about the importance of the location.
Nance Lomax went to the Stonewall Inn as a transgender teenager hoping to find community.
“Stonewall meant the world to me,” Ms. Lomax said at the time. “It taught me I could be or do anything.”
Others spoke about their arrests during the protest that followed a raid on June 28, 1969. The Police Department was trying to enforce a prohibition against selling alcoholic drinks to “homosexuals,” a news release from the White House said. It was part of a tumultuous history between the police and gay New Yorkers that, though much improved, still lingers in memories today.
New York City designated the tavern a landmark last June. It has been on the National Register of Historic Places since 1999.
On Friday, a cadre of New York’s elected officials, including Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo, Mayor Bill de Blasio, and Senators Kirsten Gillibrand and Chuck Schumer, praised the designation after it was announced.
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