Stonewall Forever Project needs your help telling LGBT history

NEW YORK (FOX5NY.COM) - It's hard to imagine anyone thinking the Stonewall Inn on Christopher Street in Greenwich Village is just a bar. Maybe it was just a bar, but that was before the 1969 riots that made it a symbolic focal point for gay rights.

In 2016, Stonewall became a historic monument. It was about the same time the massacre at the Pulse nightclub in Orlando drew easily thousands to push back against hate. The massive show of force was naturally drawn to the inn.

To further cement understanding of its historic significance, the LGBT Community Center in the West Village has launched the Stonewall Forever Project. With a major grant from Google, the center is collecting photos, artifacts, and people's stories to be displayed in what they plan to be a digitally immersive experience.

Jeffrey Klein, chief strategy officer, says that while the riots brought the gay rights movement into focus, it would be a long time before the contributions of the transgender community, including Sylvia Rivera and Marsha Johnson, would be recognized and advanced.

Even 49 years later on the eve of another gay pride celebration, that plight is far from over. Klein says that transgender people disproportionately face violence.

We still face disproportionate violence In unprecedented numbers especially for transgender of color so the fight is long from over.