If you've ever wondered why our precinct, and all precincts in NYC, for that matter, have two green lights flanking their entrance, well, the tradition of the green lights goes back to the 1600's when the earliest group of 8 officers carried green lanterns on their rounds of New Amsterdam.

Once back from patrol, the officers would hang the lamps at the watch house.

Today, the green sconces indicate that the precinct is open and staffed.

Queer Harlem Walking Tour

A new Queer Harlem Renaissance walking tour awaits. Get your boots on to stroll along the streets that witnessed the people, places and histories of the 1920s-1930’s drag balls, rent parties, musical performances and daily life.

If you’re into tech, you can also use a phone app with augmented reality for historical context, imagery and even audio. The tour focuses on the influence of gay social networks on the development of the Harlem Renaissance and on the importance of sexual identity. A new tour is coming up on Thursday, November 9; register here.

While the Harlem Renaissance heralded works by Black artists and writers, Queer history, especially Black queer history, has often marginalized or fully erased from collective consciousness. By digitally re-creating, sharing, and amplifying these landmarks, the tour organizers are ensuring that a crucial history is not forgotten.

Abri Aiken, an architectural designer at DLR Group, and Terry Valery II, a UX consultant, created the application. Aiken hosts the tour with Brian Turner, a co-author of the book Disappearing Queer Spaces, which formed the basis of the app.

The free-to-download app features now-demolished locations such as Lafayette Theater, which was a major performance venue; The Hotel Olga known as the "premier hotel for African Americans during the Harlem Renaissance"; and Clam House, a popular nightclub for LGBTQ+ people during the era. A map pinpoints the venues' exact locations.

The app also showcases several notable people in the movement, including Bessie Smith, the iconic bisexual "Empress of Blues," Wallace Thurman who edited several Black magazines, and, of course, poet and activist Langston Hughes.

The concept for the tour began in 2022 when Columbia University students created the Disappearing Queer Spaces book to spotlight places that were significant to the 1920s Harlem Renaissance. The published the book digitally, printed 200 copies and sought to share the story even more widely.

"In a time when drag balls are being banned and queer and Black hate crimes are rampant throughout the country and the world," Aiken said, "it is important to remember the origins of this beautiful community and bring about awareness."