A public meeting was held last night in New York City on whether to make the Stonewall Inn a national monument.
U.S. Congressman Jerry Nadler (D-10) told Secretary of the Interior Sally Jewell and National Parks Service Director Jonathan Jarvis that it’s important to recognize that the gay rights movement began at the Stonewall Inn in 1969.
“We are calling on President Obama to designate a national monument here, and to give this history a place in America’s park system, which tells the stories of our ongoing struggle for equality in America, from Selma, to Seneca Falls, to Stonewall. It’s time.”
The national monument would include Christopher Park across the street from the Stonewall, the streets surrounding the park, and the Stonewall property. It was declared a city landmark last year.
It’s hoped that President Obama will make the declaration in June, during Pride Month.
