The National Park Service (NPS) has deleted any mentions of transgender individuals from the Stonewall National Monument website. The site commemorates the Stonewall Riots of 1969, a pivotal moment in LGBTQ+ history that includes trans women of color.
Stonewall Monument Erases Trans History
Government agencies adjusted definitions of sex to strictly male or female after Donald Trump issued an executive order on his first day back. The Stonewall Inn Gives Back Initiative denounced the action, saying it misrepresents history and undervalues transgender contributions to LGBTQ+ rights.
Expanded Anti-Trans Regulations
Since his return, Trump has issued several directives affecting trans Americans, such as prohibiting trans athletes, limiting healthcare access for trans youth, and reassigning trans women to federal prisons. However, a court has temporarily stopped the prison directive.
The Historic Role of Stonewall Monument
Barack Obama designated the Stonewall Monument in 2016, and it stands in Greenwich Village, New York City. The website initially acknowledged the LGBTQ+ group, but it now mentions only LGB persons and removes all transgender references.
Outrage and Reaction
Governor Kathy Hochul of New York referred to the revisions as “cruel and petty,” reiterating the state’s refusal to tolerate the erasure of trans history.
Concerns over the future of federal rights for transgender Americans have been raised by the widespread outcry against this reinterpretation of LGBTQ+ history.
Source: The Guardian
