Sneak Peek of New Stonewall National Monument Visitor Center

A spotlight on the new visitor center

As one of the founding sponsors of the visitor center, AARP was granted an exclusive tour before the official public opening. Here’s what to expect.

The aim of the visitor center is to commemorate Stonewall’s legacy and educate the public about LGBTQ+ history. At the heart of the mission is bringing awareness to the troves of untold stories and unnamed activists from the Stonewall period.

“When people talk about Stonewall, they say two names: Sylvia [Rivera] and Marsha [P. Johnson] … but there were a whole lot of other names and people as well,” says Diana Rodriguez, founder and CEO of Pride Live. “To broaden the Stonewall legacy is what we hope to do here.”

The center pays an authentic homage to its history, with thoughtfully curated exhibits and artifacts that are emblematic of the 1969 uprising. A jukebox — the same model as the one destroyed in the raid and captured in notorious photographs — will sit in the space. The original archway that used to connect the original bar (the present-day Stonewall Inn) and dance floor (now the visitor center), remains untouched.

To pay homage to Stonewall’s history, a jukebox — the same model as the one destroyed during the 1969 raid — will sit in the space.

Jackie Molloy

The center will provide a history of the gay rights movement, with a wall panel depicting important photos and milestones in LGBTQ+ history curated by Stonewall activist Mark Segal, 73. Film footage documenting LGBTQ+ activism will be projected onto the back wall, with other installations interspersed throughout the space. An AARP exhibit called Stonewall Generations will feature video interviews with celebrities, including Adam Lambert, Silvia Vasquez-Lavado and Chelsea Clinton, discussing what Stonewall means to them. In another exhibit, visitors will have the opportunity to engage with influential historical figures from the Stonewall period through an immersive augmented reality experience.

Of equal importance to the organizers was to add younger generations of LGBTQ+ voices to the collective dialogue. “Honoring the old and bringing it to the current day is something we hope to do throughout the space,” Guerrero says.

Through a new partnership with the Parsons School of Design, students enrolled in a special “Live Project” course will produce an art project for the visitor center that will be reinterpreted and reimagined every year. For the program’s inaugural year, students wove strings of fabric together to represent the interconnectedness of personal queer experiences. The fabric is pinned against a backdrop of posters, event flyers and memorabilia honoring queer spaces around New York City. 

Each year, students from the Parsons School of Design will produce an art project for the Stonewall National Monument Visitor Center. This year’s exhibit represents the interconnectedness of personal queer experiences.

Jackie Molloy

Plans for opening day

The doors of the visitor center are set to open June 28, after the grand opening ceremony held in Christopher Park that will include musical performances and observations from leaders of LGBTQ+ nonprofits and the Biden administration. The visitor center is free and will have timed-entry passes. 

“[We feel passionate because] this is a place of firsts,” Rodriguez says. “[This area in the West Village is] the first LGBTQ monument by the National Park Service. … You’re sitting in what will be the first LGBTQ visitor center within the National Park Service.”

After years of changeover, with stints as a bagel shop and nail salon, 51 Christopher St. will return to its Stonewall origins, embracing its hard-fought history of “firsts” and future as an epicenter of LGBTQ+ pride and activism.