Neighborhood News: During Pride Month, all roads lead to Northalsted
Since June is Pride Month, it’s important to recognize Chicago’s pioneering role in creating a safe, inclusive space for the LGBTQ+ community to live, work, and celebrate individuality.
Pride Month, according to Chicago Pride.com, is celebrated each year in the month of June to honor the 1969 Stonewall Uprising in New York City’s Greenwich Village, which was a tipping point for the Gay Liberation Movement in the United States.
The first Pride march in Chicago was held on June 28, 1970, on the one-year anniversary of the Stonewall Uprising.
In fact, the Northalsted community (formerly Boys Town) section of Lakeview, bordered on Irving Park Road on the north, Broadway on the east, Wellington Avenue on the south, and Sheffield Avenue on the west, holds the distinction of being the nation’s first officially recognized gay village, aka ‘gayborhood.’ Niche. com estimates the population at 4,350.
‘Boys Town’ History
Tracy Baim, a Chicago historian and co-founder and publisher of Windy City Times, one of Chicago’s LGBTQ newspapers told WBEZ Chicagothat the gay areas were (at first) dispersed across Chicago but “a lot of it was centered around downtown, River North, and Tower Town in the mid part of the last century. And then, slowly, as rents went up and other things happened, the community was forced out.”
However, Chicago has long had a gay neighborhood, according to Wikipedia sources. Beginning in the 1920s, there was active homosexual nightlife, adjacent to the Water Tower. In 1961, Illinois was the first state to repeal its sodomy law. Effective LGBT political involvement began in the 1960s, alongside the civil rights movement, with organizations such as Chicago Gay Liberation. In 1965, Mattachine Midwest was founded as a gay rights organization following the Fun Lounge police raidthe previous year.
According to the Encyclopedia of Chicago History,the unofficial designation of Boys Town as an area within Lake View dates back to 1970, when residents marched here in the first Gay Pride Parade.
However, gay bars not only developed as entertainment venues for the LGBT+ community, but also as essential community spaces and activism grounds as the LGBT+ movement grew.
An Official Community
The area became an official community in 1998. According to Wikipedia sources, then-Mayor Richard M. Daley made possible a $3.2 million restoration of the North Halsted Street corridor, and the city erected rainbow pylon landmarks along the route.
Landmark Northalsted…
Today, it’s known for its welcoming vibe, nonstop nightlife, LGBTQ-owned businesses, and excellent dining options, according to the. It’s also the center of some of Chicago’s most popular events and festivals, including the Chicago Pride Parade, one of the largest gay pride parades in the nation, which takes place in Lakeview on the last Sunday of June. The area is also host to Chicago Pride Fest from Saturday, June 17 – Sunday, June 18.
It is also home to Center on Halsted, an LGBT community center that hosts an array of public programs open to the public that provide fun, educational and enlightening opportunities for members of the LGBT community and allies.
Stroll the award-winning Legacy Walk, the world’s only outdoor LGBTQ history museum. Located on Halsted Street from Belmont Avenue to Grace Street, the Legacy Walk commemorates LGBTQ+ heroes and historical events with colorful monuments. For more Pride Month events, click here.
Happy Pride Month, all!
Alison Moran-Powers and Dean’s Team Chicago
