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 The Center's facade on West 13th Street | |
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| Founded | December 1, 1983 (1983-12-01) |
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| Location | |
| Coordinates | 40°44′18″N74°00′04″W / 40.738255°N 74.001123°W /40.738255; -74.001123 |
| Website | gaycenter |
TheLesbian, Gay, Bisexual & Transgender Community Center (formerlyLesbian and Gay Community Services Center), commonly calledThe Center, is anonprofit organization serving thelesbian,gay,bisexual andtransgender (LGBTQ) population ofNew York City and nearby communities.
The Center is located in theWest Village at 208West 13th Street inLower Manhattan, in a historic building which formerly housed an elementary school and the High School for Food Trades. The Center is a member of theEquality Federation.
In December 1983, the New York City Board of Estimates approved the sale of the former Food and Maritime Trades High School, located at 208 West 13th Street, to the Lesbian & Gay Community Services Center, Inc. for $1.5 million. According to the Greenwich Village Society for Historical Preservation, the first tenants of the Center were Partnership for The Homeless, Community Health Project,Friends of the Earth, S.A.G.E.,Metropolitan Community Church and theMedia Network.[1] In its first year, 60 groups met regularly at the center. By 2007, more than 300 groups called the center home.[2]
In 1985, the center became the temporary home to theHarvey Milk High School, a program of the Hetrick-Martin Institute. The Lesbian Switchboard became a permanent tenant after leaving theWomen's Liberation Center,[3] and Dignity, aCatholic gay and lesbianreligious organization, sought refuge when it was expelled fromCatholic churches.[citation needed]
In 1989, the center commissionedThe Center Show, an art exhibit to commemorate the 20th anniversary of theStonewall riots. Some of the pieces in the exhibit included:Adam and Eve by George Martin,Boy on a Wall by Stephen Lack, andOnce Upon a Time byKeith Haring.[4]
The availability of meeting space was a major organizing tool for the LGBT movement in the 1980s and early 1990s. Groups that have expanded throughout the nation, such as theAIDS Coalition to Unleash Power (ACT UP),Queer Nation,Lesbian Avengers, andGay & Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation (GLAAD), had their inception at the center.[citation needed] At one point in the early 1990s, the center was hosting regular meetings for more than three hundred groups.[5]
In 2015, the center completed a $9.2 million renovation, which included numerous improvements to the space, acoustics, and lighting. Art from the 1989The Center Show is prominently showcased throughout the newly renovated space.[4][6][7]
Every week, 6,000 people visit the center, and more than 300 groups meet in the building.[8] These groups range from political activist organizations to social clubs. The center also frequently hosts speeches, performances, workshops, and commercially sponsored information sessions.
Programs produced by the center include Center Wellness, an Adult Services Department working with people with AIDS, struggling with substance abuse issues, mental health challenges and much more; Youth Services, an activities-based program for LGBT youth; Center Cultural Programs, presenting established and emerging artists, writers, and activists to the community; Center Families, the center's family project.
Bureau of General Services—Queer Division is a bookstore and event space located on the second floor of the center.[9]
The Center Library is a lending library started in 1991. It has been closed to the public since March 2020, with plans to reopen October 2024. The Library has sponsored monthly reading groups and been a producer and/or collaborator for literary events of interest to the LGBT+ community.[10] The Library is named in honor ofPat Parker andVito Russo, individuals who championed LGBT+ causes in their professional and personal lives.
The LGBT Community Center National History Archive is a community-basedarchive founded in 1990. Particular subject areas includegay liberation and the earlyHIV/AIDS crisis in New York.
The center offers programs which care for the health and needs of the LGBT community. These programs includesubstance use treatments for adults and youths, recovery support, recovery resources, insurance enrollment,HIV &AIDS support, TGNC (trans andgender non-conforming) support, internships and professional training, andcounseling andmental health.[11]
NumerousAlcoholics Anonymous,Narcotics Anonymous, and othertwelve-step recovery groups meet at the center. The center's Mental Health and Social Services division also sponsors support groups focused oncoming out,transgender rights,bereavement, and other topics of concern to the LGBT community.
The center provides support for individuals and their families. Some of the services and programming of the center include building families, strengthening families, connecting families, family therapy certification, and family resources.[12]
The center provides a range of events and services for individuals ages 13–21 such as dances, movie screenings, open mic night, summer camp and discussion groups. The programming and services are connection, leadership, support, and youth resources.[12]
The center also houses Center Youth (previously called Y.E.S.), which provides support and resources for LGBTQ and allied youth. Programs such as both a young men's and a young women's discussion group, a gender exploration group, a safe schools network, a yearly summer camp and a variety of support groups are available to youth free of charge.[citation needed]
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In February 2011, the center became embroiled in a controversy over a pro-Palestinian group that was to have a party in the building on March 5 during "Israeli Apartheid Week". The group, Siegebusters, planned to train activists and raise funds for another vessel to break theIsraeli naval blockade of Gaza.[13][14][15]Advocate columnist and porn producerMichael Lucas threatened a boycott, claiming thatIsrael is the only gay-friendly country in theMiddle East, that the group wasantisemitic, and that LGBT people in thePalestinian territories are tortured and killed.[13][14] The center cancelled the party, stating that Siegebusters was not an LGBT-related group.[16] Siegebusters protested the decision by organizing anonline petition; whereas Lucas hailed the decision in an interview withThe Jerusalem Post.[15]
In May 2011, the center announced that it would allow the groupQueers Against Israeli Apartheid to meet in their building.[17] The Center defended the move, stating that it "provides space for a variety of LGBT voices in our community to engage in conversations on a range of topics."[17] At the beginning of June 2011, the Center decided to place a "moratorium" on renting space to "groups that organize around the Israeli-Palestinian conflict."[18]
