Together We Thrive Stories of Pride 2023

Among all of the fabulous ways to recognize and uplift the collective power of the LGBTQ+ community, we invite you to celebrate The Center’s 40th Anniversary with us! From our founding in 1983 during the height of the AIDS crisis to 2023 as anti-LGBTQ+ legislation sweeps the nation, The Center is as necessary as ever. We hope you find inspiration in our history of service.

To commemorate our milestone, please enjoy a special 40th Anniversary video, created in memory of all those we’ve lost along the way and in celebration of the changemakers yet to come. Below, read as members, staff, and leaders of The Center’s past and present reflect on how our work has shaped New York’s LGBTQ+ community and culture.

Marcy Kahn on Working With The Queer Community

Having the privilege of helping found an institution as amazing as The Center, and working with some of the most remarkable leaders within New York’s LGBTQ+ community in the process, is the most-meaningful thing I’ve ever done. It changed my life, and now, as we commemorate The Center’s 40th anniversary, I am so deeply moved knowing that the lives it saved 40 years ago are being saved still today.

Being gay in 1983 was very hard. No one would consider your life was real or existed. There were no anti-discrimination protections, and we were 2 years into the AIDS crisis with a President who refused to even utter the words. A handful of LGBTQ-friendly organizations rented office space in a city-owned building at 208 West 13th Street—and unexpectedly, they were told they were being evicted. I was a partner at a midsized law firm and I was asked if I could help. We were able to postpone the sale of the building and negotiate for its purchase. But to do that would require organizing like never before.

LGBTQ+ activists and leaders from across New York met at the building to nurture an idea: We needed a community center that would provide meeting spaces for groups, offer a place for people to socialize outside of the bars, host cultural events, and establish a clinic providing counseling and services for people with AIDS. It was time to try!

We had a real fight on our hands. The administrations were against us. The politics were against us. We were broke. The building was not code compliant. And our friends were dying. There were months of lobbying and painstaking negotiations, but finally, when I stood before the Board of Estimates in December 1983 to speak in support of a proposal to sell the building to a nascent non-profit entity called the Lesbian and Gay Community Services Center, it passed unanimously!

The creation of The Center gave New York’s LGBTQ+ community an identity, a focus, and a home. And it stands today as a testament to the power of great, heroic people who came together to make it happen!

Isaiah On The Importance of Celebrating Yourself

At The Center, I’m always reminded of who I am, why I am, and where I came from. The very first time I arrived at The Center, everyone was so inclusive and welcomed me with open arms. I started in the Youth Pride Chorus, but quickly took advantage of every single thing that was available to me: vogueing groups, sexual health internships, résumé workshops, plus Youth Summer Camp as a participant and also as a Family Group Leader. And now I’m performing at The Center in drag!

To me, one of the most important aspects of The Center is knowing that everyone is there to help you. Through the connections I’ve made at The Center, I’ve learned that we, as LGBTQ+ people, get to choose our family and build it from scratch. A chosen family stands together, works to understand each other, and finds comfort in each other. We all deserve love, kindness, and respect because at the end of the day, all we have is ourselves.

Pride is a reminder that we’re here for a reason. Especially under the threat of so much anti-trans, anti-drag, anti-queer legislation—we are not going anywhere! And the fact that The Center has been around for 40 years, still making a difference, is such an inspiration: it shows me that I have the potential to use my talent and my voice to make change. I am not going to stop being me, using my platform, and celebrating exactly who we are.

Louisa on Why We're in This Together

At The Center, I’m always reminded of who I am, why I am, and where I came from. The very first time I arrived at The Center, everyone was so inclusive and welcomed me with open arms. I started in the Youth Pride Chorus, but quickly took advantage of every single thing that was available to me: vogueing groups, sexual health internships, résumé workshops, plus Youth Summer Camp as a participant and also as a Family Group Leader. And now I’m performing at The Center in drag!

To me, one of the most important aspects of The Center is knowing that everyone is there to help you. Through the connections I’ve made at The Center, I’ve learned that we, as LGBTQ+ people, get to choose our family and build it from scratch. A chosen family stands together, works to understand each other, and finds comfort in each other. We all deserve love, kindness, and respect because at the end of the day, all we have is ourselves.

Pride is a reminder that we’re here for a reason. Especially under the threat of so much anti-trans, anti-drag, anti-queer legislation—we are not going anywhere! And the fact that The Center has been around for 40 years, still making a difference, is such an inspiration: it shows me that I have the potential to use my talent and my voice to make change. I am not going to stop being me, using my platform, and celebrating exactly who we are.

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