Legacy Walk, LGBTQ history collection at North Halsted Street in Chicago, United States
The Legacy Walk stretches roughly half a mile along North Halsted Street, featuring pairs of tall steel Rainbow Pylons that hold bronze biographical markers. Each marker displays a short life story of an LGBTQ individual against a painted city backdrop.
The project began following a national march in Washington in 1987 and drew inspiration from the NAMES Project AIDS Memorial Quilt. It started to preserve and display stories that had been missing from conventional historical records.
The walk honors LGBTQ people from many fields whose stories had been left out of history books. The bronze markers share their achievements with anyone passing by, making their contributions part of the neighborhood's story.
You can view the markers anytime since they sit outdoors along a public street. Walking the full length takes time to read each one, so a slow pace helps you absorb the information without feeling rushed.
New markers go up each year during National Coming Out Day in October, with older plaques rotated out to make room for emerging stories. This keeps the collection alive and ever-growing rather than frozen in time.
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