The Stonewall National Monument is more than a site in New York City. It is a marker of courage. It is a testament to the ordinary people who, in 1969, refused to accept invisibility. It represents the moment when resistance became movement.
The Pride flag was flown there as a visible reminder of that legacy—not as a political statement, but as an affirmation that LGBTQ+ people exist, have existed, and will continue to exist.
When symbols connected to our shared history are removed from spaces created to honor that history, it gives many in our community pause. For LGBTQ+ people—especially those whose rights and identities continue to be debated—visibility is not symbolic alone. It is protective. It is affirming. It is necessary.
We are especially mindful that recent changes to interpretive materials at the monument have diminished explicit recognition of transgender people—particularly transgender women of color—whose leadership and sacrifice were central to the uprising. History should not become more convenient over time. It should become more complete. To tell the story of Stonewall without fully honoring the transgender people who helped ignite it is to narrow a history that belongs to all of us.
Here in Central Ohio, we know that our community’s story is inseparable from the broader story of the LGBTQ+ movement in this country. The courage of those at Stonewall shaped what became Pride marches in Columbus. It shaped community centers like ours. It shaped the work we continue today.
Stonewall Columbus remains committed to increasing visibility, inclusion, and connection for the LGBTQ+ community so that all of us thrive. We honor the legacy of those who stood up in 1969, and we reaffirm our belief that our history should be preserved, our identities respected, and our visibility protected.
Our work here in Central Ohio continues—rooted in the same spirit of courage and community that gave rise to the movement at Stonewall.
This statement may be attributed to Densil Porteous, Stonewall Columbus’ Executive Director.
