ABSTRACT
“Taking Action” examines the varied forces that have contributed to improving the coverage of LGBTQ history within the historic preservation movement. From landmark designations and marker programs to creative public art projects, advocates for LGBTQ heritage are finding ways to make hidden histories publicly visible. These initiatives have been advanced both by nonprofit groups and broader market forces that have cultivated LGBTQ people and their allies as prospects for queer-inflected heritage tourism. Scholarly and professional associations have also buoyed LGBTQ preservation efforts in recent decades. While focused efforts to remedy gaps in the coverage of queer heritage have been productive, the essay concludes with a call to connect these initiatives with the concerns of other marginalized groups to set a shared agenda for reform that addresses biases built into standard institutional policies and practices that erect barriers to cultural equity and inclusion in historic preservation programs.
