Marking Queer History on Austin’s Fourth Street

Last month, the rainbow crosswalks on Fourth were washed away – a move that followed several other Texan cities losing their colorful murals and street art thanks to a directive by Gov. Greg Abbott. Heartbreak spread throughout the local queer community and inspired a vigil held on July 21. But just under the radar for many mourners was a project three years in the making: a historical marker that will “recognize the people, places, and stories that have contributed to Austin’s LGBTQIA+ history and the history of our city,” according to the city of Austin. 

Current LGBTQ+ Quality of Life Commissioner Garry Brown says the idea occurred to him near the end of his tenure on the city’s Human Rights Commission. It was in his remarks at his final HRC meeting where Brown says he tasked the commission with taking up the queer historical marker idea, with Commissioner Muneeb “Meebs” Aslam writing the resolution that was eventually passed and sent to City Council. “The only real challenge was waiting for city council to place the item on its agenda,” writes Brown over email. “There wasn’t any pushback that I know of from anyone.” City Council approved the installation in September of 2023. Language on the marker – developed by a team including Brown with later revisions made by the LGBTQ Quality of Life Advisory Commission – not only offers acknowledgements of the wider LGBTQIA+ communities’ continued struggles, intersectionality, and achievements, but also references specific Austin queer history such as the founding date of the local Gay Liberation Front chapter in 1970. 

Although Austin’s lack of a specific “gayborhood” like the kind found in Houston, Dallas, or San Antonio does mean, as Brown says, “[we] live on every corner,” he thought back to his own queer Austin origins when considering the physical placement of a queer historical marker. “As a young gay, back in the mid-80s, I needed to find community,” he recalls. “Back then, that meant the bars located at Fourth and Colorado streets, that was where most of our community gathered.” He also says he specifically wanted the monument placed beneath the Bettie Naylor street sign on the intersection’s southwest corner. “Since she is the mother of the gay rights movement in Texas,” he says, “I thought this placement would be particularly poignant.”

To celebrate the marker’s dedication – and to kick off Austin Pride weekend – a ceremony is scheduled for Friday, Aug. 21, at 10:30am. In addition to words from speakers like U.S. Rep. Lloyd Doggett, Mayor Kirk Watson, Council Member Zo Qadri, and representatives from local queer organizations OutYouth, the LGBT Chamber of Commerce, Equality Texas, and Pride in Black ATX, gathered guests will enjoy a performance by fellow LGBTQ Commissioner Brigitte Bandit. Brown says his city contact assured him there’ll be shade over most of the block that morning, so sun glare won’t be too much of an issue. In true Fourth Street spirit, there’ll also be a small reception post-marker-unveiling at Rain on 4th.

With news of the rainbow crosswalk removal still floating in the local queer consciousness, it’d be easy to see this marker as a stopgap reaction. That’s simply not the case: “This has been a 3-year labor of love,” says Brown. “Even though this dedication comes on the heels of the covering up of the rainbow crosswalks, the historical marker is not related to that action. However, this couldn’t have come at a better time. We, our community and our city, are figuratively planting a flag in the middle of the [capital] of Texas.”

This article appears in August 21 • 2026.