President Barack Obama is set to make history by naming the first ever national monument to the gay rights movement in the United States of America. The White House is expected to name a small portion of New York City Greenwich Village as a national monument recognizing the birthplace of the modern gay and Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, Queer (LGBTQ) rights movement in the U.S.
According to The Washington Post, the proposed location for the national monument to gay rights is allegedly near the historic Stonewall Inn, the site of the 1969 Stonewall Riots which served as the origin of the gay rights movement in the United States. Federal officials are set to meet and discuss the official plans for the new national monument commemorating the gay rights movement.
While the location isn't set in stone yet, it's expected that the White House will decide on the exact location and designate the area a part of the National Park Service. It has been speculated that President Obama could name the new national monument as soon as next month in time for gay pride festivals throughout the U.S., The New York Times has learned.
The White House's decision to commemorate and recognize the gay rights movement with a national monument comes at a time when several states have passed legislation curtailing the rights of gay and transgender individuals.
From North Carolina's bathroom bill to Mississippi's religious freedom bill, both of which have met with serious legal challenges by civil rights advocates like the ACLU.President Obama's support for the new national monument reflects his administration's history of support for gay rights and civil liberties, Thomson Reuters Foundation News reports.
The location of the proposed gay rights monument was chosen deliberately, the Stonewall Riots in 1969 were pivotal for the establishment of gay rights in the United States of America and the public acceptance of the LGBT community as a whole.
