Stolen plaque replaced at site of New Orleans' deadliest fire

Axios

5 hours ago

A stolen plaque commemorating New Orleans' deadliest fire has been replaced ahead of the blaze's 52nd anniversary on Tuesday.
Why it matters: The intentionally set fire at the Up Stairs Lounge killed 32 people and was the deadliest attack on U.S. soil against the LGBTQ+ community until the Orlando Pulse nightclub mass shooting in 2016.
The big picture: Mourners will gather at 7pm Tuesday at the new plaque for a solemn ceremony to remember the dead, says Frank Perez, executive director of the LGBT+ Archives Project of Louisiana.
The ceremony comes after Sunday's memorial second line and the plaque dedication, he tells Axios New Orleans.
The new plaque replaces one the city dedicated in 2003 at 604 Iberville St. It was stolen last year. Perez said they raised enough to fund the new plaque, insure it and pay for maintenance and some future commemorations.
"It's a very good feeling, let me tell you," Perez said.
Zoom in: Dannie Conner Jr., 40, was arrested in September on a theft charge, NOPD says. His motive was not immediately available.
He pled guilty in March, according to court records. In the plea deal, he was credited for time served and sentenced to 100 hours of community service with Metropolitan Community Church.
He also agreed to write a letter of apology to the victims. The original plaque was not recovered, NOPD says.
His next status hearing is July 25.
What they're saying:"After many hurdles, the plaque is home again, outside what was once a vital safe haven for gay New Orleanians when few places like that existed," wrote Councilmember JP Morrell on Facebook.
He said his office helped with the permitting process.
Flashback: The Up Stairs Lounge was on the second floor of a building at the corner of Iberville and Chartres streets.
It opened in 1970 and gained a reputation as a welcoming place for white gay men, Black people, drag performers, transgender people and straight allies, according to the LGBT+ Archives Project.
On June 24, 1973, someone lit a fire at the base of the stairs leading to the lounge. The blaze spread and killed 29 people in less than 20 minutes. Three more people died at the hospital.
Nearly a third of the victims were military veterans, according to the National WWII Museum.
No arrests have been made in the case more than 50 years later.
By the numbers: New Orleans has one of the largest concentrations of LGBTQ+ people in the U.S., with 4.7% of the adult population identifying as members of the communities, according to UCLA's Williams Institute.
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