Lower East Side History Month is an annual celebration of the rich and diverse history of the Lower East Side.
Each year in May, Lower East Side cultural and community groups, small businesses and residents create a variety of public events, exhibits, tours, and learning opportunities.
Annual events include the LES Community Hero Awards through which neighbors nominate and present public recognitions to community members who’ve made a difference to life in the LES.
Honoring the history of this community together is one element in working collaboratively to sustain an inclusive LES – despite waves of change and displacement. The Lower East Side has been home to Black, Indigenous, Latinx, Asian American, and Pacific Islander peoples, to LGBTQ communities, to artists, radicals, organizers, immigrants, refugees, workers, and more. In May, we celebrate their past stories and their presence today.
Lower East Side History Month was conceived by Downtown Art and FAB in 2014, and launched in partnership with community organizations from all parts of the Lower East Side.
VIEW THE FULL EVENT CALENDAR FOR LOWER EAST SIDE HISTORY MONTH 2025!
2025 Participating organizations:
A Abrons Arts Center, Art Loisaida Foundation
B Bond Street Theatre, Bowery Alliance of Neighbors
C Chinatown Partnership, Cooper Square Committee, CultureHub
E Earth Celebrations, East Village Community Coalition, Educational Alliance – Manny Cantor Center, Essex Market
G Good Old Lower East Side (GOLES), Grand Street Settlement, Green Map
I IATI Theater, International Center of Photography
K Kehila Kedosha Janina Synagogue & Museum
L La MaMa ETC, LES Girls Club, LESReady!, Loisaida Inc., Lower East Side History Project, Lower East Side Partnership, Lower East Side Preservation Initiative
M Merchant’s House Museum, Museum at Eldridge Street
N New Museum of Contemporary Art, New York Marble Cemetery, New York Theatre Workshop, Nuyorican Poets Cafe
O Office of Assembly Member Harvey Epstein, Office of City Council Member Carlina Rivera, Office of City Council Member Christopher Marte, Ottendorfer Library
P The Performance Project @ University Settlement, Poetry Project
S St Marks Church in-the-Bowery, Swiss Institute
T Tenement Museum, Think!Chinatown, Theater for the New City, Tompkins Square Library