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(from left) Stonewall National Monument in Christopher Park, New York City; Congressman Dan Goldman
In an exclusive interview, Rep. Dan Goldman tells The Advocate the National Park Service’s actions are “shameful and outrageous.”
When the National Park Service quietly stripped references to transgender and bisexual people from the website of Stonewall National Monument in New York City earlier this year, Democratic lawmakers saw more than bureaucratic editing. They saw a pattern.
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On Friday morning, more than 70 House Democrats led by Reps. Dan Goldman of New York, Mark Takano of California, and Ritchie Torres of New York demanded that Interior Secretary Doug Burgum and Acting NPS Director Jessica Bowron reverse what they called a “blatant attack on the integrity of public history.” In their letter, obtained by The Advocate, the members denounced the administration’s effort to “rewrite history across national parks” and warned that similar edits are appearing in official interpretations of Japanese American incarceration, Native American massacres, and slavery.
Related: 'Transgender' references erased from Stonewall National Monument website
The 72 lawmakers wrote that the history of Stonewall cannot be told without the stories of transgender Americans, adding that erasure from the national narrative undermines the credibility of the Park Service and betrays the ideals of equality and justice the monument was created to honor.
In an exclusive interview with The Advocate, Goldman called the revisions “shameful and outrageous.” He said the deletion of trans identities from official government platforms “demeans humanity” and “undermines everything this country stands for.” Goldman added, “The idea of individual freedom to be who you want to be is such a fundamental American value. And this effort to delete not only trans people, but the notion of transgender identity itself, is an attempt to rewrite science, history, and truth.”
According to the letter, the Park Service removed references to transgender people in February and briefly deleted most mentions of bisexual Americans just before Pride Month, though the bi references have since been restored. The agency also declined to fund transgender Pride flags for this year’s Stonewall display, breaking a practice that began in 2023, under President Joe Biden, the most pro-LGBTQ+ president in U.S. history.
Related: What you need to know about the Stonewall uprising, which began 55 years ago
The Stonewall National Monument, established by President Barack Obama in 2016, was the first unit of the National Park System dedicated to LGBTQ+ equality. It commemorates the 1969 uprising outside New York City’s Stonewall Inn, when queer and trans New Yorkers — led by trans figures such as Marsha P. Johnson, Sylvia Rivera, and Miss Major Griffin-Gracey — resisted police raids and ignited a movement. Earlier this week, Miss Major died, a loss that hung heavily over the lawmakers’ appeal.
Goldman said those who took the risk of standing up for what was right, even in the face of ridicule and violence, deserve to be honored for leading the charge. “Just as we remember Rosa Parks for her courage, we must preserve the legacy of the trans women who made Stonewall possible,” he said.
The lawmakers’ concern extends beyond one site. A June 9 NPS memorandum ordered park units nationwide to solicit public comment on any exhibits that “portray American history in a negative light.” Critics say the directive invites partisan interference in how the nation remembers itself — an echo of the “anti-woke” campaigns that have swept through school boards and museums.
To Goldman, the episode reflects a broader strategy of scapegoating. “Republicans have moved on to the next culture-war issue they can manipulate,” he said, “and so much of these attacks are against children. It’s inexcusable.”
Since President Donald Trump’s return to power in January, LGBTQ+ visibility has vanished across federal agencies: health, education, and defense websites have dropped references to gender identity; diversity initiatives have been defunded; Pride observances canceled. The Stonewall edits, Democrats say, crystallize an authoritarian impulse to control public memory.
Related: No LGB without the T — queer community protests Trump's transgender erasure at Stonewall
Some Democratic strategists whisper that the party should downplay trans issues to avoid political backlash. Goldman rejects that calculus outright. “It is inexcusable for those of us who believe in individual freedom and equal rights to run away because it may be politically inconvenient,” he said. “We can’t allow the message to be co-opted by bad-faith actors looking to pick on the most vulnerable among us.”
Goldman, who helped prosecute Trump during the first impeachment, said he expects retribution. “Donald Trump is a wannabe mob boss,” he said. “He’ll threaten anyone who holds him accountable. But I’m not going to shy away from standing up for what’s right.”
For the lawmakers, the fight is larger than any administration. It’s about who gets to be remembered — and who is written out. Their letter closes with a simple demand: restore the erased histories and tell the truth.
“The American people deserve to know how decisions are being made about the future of their national parks,” the lawmakers wrote.
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