Stonewall National Museum, Archives and Library to Open Interactive Traveling Exhibit

May 22, 2024
HANK ORSO

Stonewall National Museum, Archives and Library to Open Interactive Traveling Exhibit

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Are you ready to experience history like never before? The Stonewall National Museum, Archives and Library is prepping and primping in anticipation of its glorious transformation into a facsimile of the Stonewall Inn as it was on June 28th, 1969. It was on that historic day when police raids transformed the small, neighborhood gay bar into a flashpoint of gay and trans visibility, sparking a three-day riot that changed LGBTQ+ history forever.

The museum, located in Ft. Lauderdale, FL, will open the exhibit on June 1st, as a grand celebration of Pride Month. It will run through Sept. 30th, and from there it will travel to cities across the country. The plan is that this will be a ten-year excursion, culminating on the 65th anniversary of the famous uprising.

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But that's not all! On June 29th, they will launch a reenactment of the events of that fated night, complete with "arrests" of patrons, with a very special appearance by Peabody and GLAAD-award winner Kristen Lovell of the HBO docu-film ‘The Stroll portraying trans activist Marsha P. Johnson, who has gone down in history as throwing "the shot glass heard round the world."

From the museum's press release, this is what visitors can expect:

Like those who fought for liberation in 1969, visitors will keep the fight alive, 55 years later, experiencing the sanctuary provided by bars like the Stonewall Inn.
Pull up a seat at the bar, where a life-size, video recorded, 85-year-old virtual bartender- who worked at Stonewall Inn and was there the night of the uprising- will reveal the going-ons on Christopher Street that day and the transition to that night’s global changing event.
Walk across the 'smoky' Stonewall Inn as number one hits of 1969, like Aquarius/Let the Sunshine in, play from the ‘jukebox.’
Take a photo alongside the Stonewall New York neon sign. #StonewallINNStonewall
Get an exclusive first look at the museum’s new 1969 Stonewall Inn artifacts and visuals that will keep visitors in 1969 until they are led out of the bar and back to the 21st century.

“Our museum derived its name from the historic Stonewall riots, indisputably one of the seminal moments in the history of the LGBTQIA+ movement in the United States,” said Stonewall National Museum, Archives & Library Executive Director Robert Kesten. “This custom-built retrospective will bring people together to celebrate in a unique, immersive way how Stonewall Inn changed the trajectory of LGBTQIA+ life.”

If you want to experience this part of our collective history for yourself, here's all you need to know:

The Stonewall INN Stonewall, NYC Experience

LOCATION:

Stonewall National Museum, Archives & Library:

1300 East Sunrise Blvd., Fort Lauderdale, FL 33304

DATES AND TIMES:

JUNE 1: 6 PM- OPENING RECEPTION On opening night (June 1) and at reenactment (June 29), visitors are asked to dress in their 1960s best and consider gender bending clothing, which was not unusual in 1969.

JUNE 2, 2024 to SEPTEMBER 30, 2024

Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Friday:11 am to 5 pm

Thursday: 11 am to 8 pm

Saturday and Sunday: 11 am to 3 pm

JUNE 29, 2024: REENACTMENT : 4:30 PM TO 7:000 PM