OLYMPIA, Wash.- The National Parks Service (NPS) has awarded $75,000 to a Washington State agency for preserving LGBTQ+ history.
The funding, which is part of a $1.25 million package for several historical preservation projects across the United States, will allow the Washington State Department of Archaeology and Historic Preservation (DAHP) to develop a history of the LGBTQ+ community in the Puget Sound area.
The NPS grant is congressionally funded through the Underrepresented Communities program. Washington was the only state on the west coast to receive an Underrepresented Communities grant this year.
The Washington State LGBTQ Commission celebrated the grant as a step toward recognizing queer history throughout the Evergreen State.
“[We] would like to thank the Department of Archaeology and Historical Preservation for their work to uncover history about our communities that have been underrecognized” the commission said.
SB 5462, a bill requiring LGBTQ+ history to be integrated into Washington State history curriculum, is currently progressing through the state senate. The bill garnered some bipartisan support in the state senate and is currently scheduled for a House Committee on Education hearing on Feb. 14.
Grants and laws relevant to the LGBTQ+ community continue to occupy policy discussions across Washington state.
