As the first part of his global odyssey Los Angeles native, author, poet, historian, artist and educator Steven Reigns visited the Center on Halsted May 29 as part of a journey with a unique aim: to record through etchings historic commemorations of LGBTQ pioneers worldwide. Reigns started what has been dubbed “The Gay Rub Project” three years ago by collecting markers by tracing the plaques and headstones with crayons over a thin sheet of fibrous paper. His visit here was more prominent than others for two reasons.
The Legacy Walk on Halsted not only displays dates of the inductees’ lives but also their contributions to the worldwide LGBTQ community. Reigns was excited to record the Halsted plaques not only because of their historic value but because the Legacy Walk has the largest, most concentrated and most detailed collection in the world. When the Legacy Walk debuted in 2012—a year after the start of the project—it was the answer to Reigns’ dream.
What made this visit doubly special was the participation of high school and college-age GLBTQ youth, a first for the project. Rather than allowing the Legacy Walk to become a dusty historical piece, the involvement of the youth not only educated and inspired them but many onlookers as well.
Reigns will continue making and collecting the etchings, ultimately touring the world and displaying them, giving Halsted’s Legacy Walk, among others, and the inductees a global audience.