What Does Stonewall Mean To You? Tell The National Park Service

GREENWICH VILLAGE, NY — The National Park Service is asking New Yorkers to explain what the Stonewall means to them as it develops its mission for the new national monument.

The Stonewall National Monument was created by Barack Obama via presidential proclamation in June 2016. The park sits across the street from the Stonewall Inn, 53 Christopher St., home of the 1969 uprisings in response to a police raid on the LGBT bar.

The National Park Service is seeking input from residents, via open houses and written comments, to help determine the future of the park. The agency is in the midst of creating a "foundation document" that, once completed, will help determine the core the national monument's mission and its ideal visitor experience. Until April 30, you'll be able to comment online about the importance of the Stonewall Inn to you, and to reflect on three draft significance statements that the National Park Service has already crafted.

"How we tell the story of the Stonewall Uprising is an integral part of increasing public knowledge and why we are reaching out to you for help," the Park Service said in a statement. "We want to hear your thoughts about what visitors to the Monument should learn, feel, and experience so that Stonewall National Monument can realize its full potential as a place that educates and inspires today's visitors as well as future generations."

You can also convene in person with neighbors and representatives of the National Park Service at six open houses that the agency will host throughout New York City in May.

You can submit your comments online here through April 30, and you can find your closest open house here.

Last year, the monument received a $1 million grant from Google's philanthropic arm to launch a new project that will preserve and document the experiences of the New Yorkers who lived through the Stonewall uprisings. The project is scheduled to be completed by June 2019, the 50th anniversary of the uprisings as well as 2019's World Pride, which will be hosted in New York City.

Image credit: Yana Paskova / Stringer / Getty Images News