On June 5, 2024, AIA NY’s LGBTQIA+ Alliance had the opportunity to organize a walking tour of the LGBTQ History in Greenwich Village, hosted by Ken Lustbader of NYC LGBT Historic Sites.  We learned about the history of our community pre- and post- Stonewall, visiting several locations associated with the early LGBTQ activism, all of which influenced American culture and politics.  Our tour started at Christopher Park, across from Stonewall, where we learned about the long-standing oppressive practices which led to the 1969 uprising and, before that, the 1966 “Sip-In” at Julius’ Bar. Stops along the tour also highlighted locations that have been especially impactful on the lives of LGBTQ people, including the starting point of the first-ever NYC Pride March (in 1970), popular gay and lesbian bars such as the Duchess and the Snake Pit, and places connected to the Mattachine Society, the Gay Activists Alliance, Radicalesbians, and the Street Transvestite Action Revolutionaries (STAR).
How better to end our tour than to discuss the history of and then share a drink at our very own Julius Bar.  We greatly appreciate the work that NYC LGBT Historic Sites does to memorialize our community’s history, to share those stories with us, and to foster pride and knowledge in those that came before us and those of us that continue to work toward our equality.  To learn more about NYC LGBT Historic sites, please visit their website (https://www.nyclgbtsites.org/).