Mark Segal will host a meet and greet as part of the celebrations
BY LARA IQBAL GILLING, IMAGE BY STEPHEN KENT JOHNSON
It’s been a year since the award-winning Stonewall National Monument Visitor Center (SNMVC) opened on 28 June. To honour the anniversary, activist and author Mark Segal will host a meet and greet at the SNMVC as part of a range of activities. He was part of the Stonewall Riots, the event which the monument commemorates.
The riots were spontaneous demonstrations against a police raid of the Stonewall Inn in the early hours of 28 June 1969. Nine policemen manhandled the clientele and arrested employees for selling alcohol without a licence and patrons who were not wearing at least three items of “gender-appropriate” clothing, in accordance with law at the time.
Unlike most other contemporary establishments, the bar served openly gay and trans people. It had become the most popular gay bar in New York City, known as a place to exist free of public scrutiny, which was rife due to homosexuality’s criminal status.
Raids were a frequent occurrence. In fact, there had been one there earlier that week. The uprising lasted for five nights and has become an icon of the fight for LGBTQIA+ rights, securing its participants’ place in history – Marsha P. Johnson, Stormé DeLarverie and Mark Segal among them.
“In a time when LGBTQ+ rights are increasingly challenged, the need for a place like the Stonewall National Monument Visitor Center is more critical than ever,” said co-founder Ann Marie Gothard. She added that it reminds visitors “of the struggles and triumphs that have shaped the fight for equality and inspiring continued action.”
In addition to welcoming over 60,000 people from all around the world to its location in the West Village, New York City, the centre offers over 55 educational programmes. These are organised with the help of various organisations, such as non-profits and gay student alliances.
Through lectures, exhibitions and both in-person and online tours, the centre educates visitors on LGBTQIA+ history and culture. It was founded by two queer women of colour, and depends on donations.
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