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Initially proposed in 1971, the Gay Rights Bill in New York City was the first of its kind in the nation, meant to prohibit discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation in housing, employment, and public accommodations. After 15 years of grassroots activism and strident opposition, the bill, known as local law Intro. 2, passed in City Council in 1986 by a vote of 21 to 14, making New York the 51st city in the country to pass such a measure.

Join us as we revisit the heated debates about gay and lesbian rights during the mayoralties of John Lindsay, Abe Beame, and Ed Koch—and consider the question of why it took so long for the bill to pass. In conversation with Village Preservation's Executive Director Andrew Berman, Stephen Petrus, Director of Public History Programs at LaGuardia and Wagner Archives at LaGuardia Community, will discuss his work as curator of a new exhibit on the Gay Rights Bill. He will focus on the roles of advocates like the Gay Activists Alliance and opponents including the Catholic Church, the Police Department, and the Fire Department, as well as look at the special role that downtown residents and communities played in this defining civil rights battle.