New map celebrates NYC’s role in fight for social justice

For centuries, New York City has served as a pivotal backdrop where many civil rights and social movements have fought hard for justice. From the Stonewall riots in the quest of LGBT rights in 1969 to the former NAACP headquarters at 69 Fifth Avenue where a flag reading “A man was lynched yesterday” flew, sparking national controversy and highlighting the injustices thrusted upon people of color, New York City sites have been involved in many of historically significant movements.

To celebrate these sites, advocacy group Greenwich Village Society for Historic Preservation (GVSHP) has created an interactive map that showcases various locations in lower Manhattan that were involved in everything from Women’s Rights to Hispanic history (h/t Architects Newspaper). The map categorizes sites by their corresponding roles in specific movements accompanied by short blurbs that details its role. Some of the places pinned on the map are the Nuyorican Poets Cafe, where poetry and music served as a form of social empowerment for Hispanics, the Arthur Garfield Hays Residence on East 10 Street where the co-founder of the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) once lived, and the many sites affiliated with birth control advocate and Planned Parenthood founder Margaret Sanger.

Check out the map for yourself and learn more about the fascinating history for the roughly 100 locations that are showcased.

• Just when we need it most, a new map charts social justice history in lower Manhattan [The Architects Newspaper]
• Greenwich Village Society for Historic Preservation [Official]
• Civil rights map is a celebration of social justice history in NYC