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Pride Foundation records
Coll2011-071
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Table of contents
Language of Material:
English
Contributing Institution:
ONE National Gay & Lesbian Archives, USC Libraries, University of Southern California
Title: Pride Foundation records
creator:
Pride Foundation (San Francisco, Calif.)
Identifier/Call Number: Coll2011-071
Physical Description:
8.8 Linear Feet
6 archive boxes + 2 archive cartons + 1 flat archive box.
Date (inclusive): 1966-1984
Date (bulk): bulk
Abstract: Articles of incorporation, bylaws, minutes, correspondence, reports, legal referral documents, contractual agreements, resolutions,
clippings, flyers, publicity material, legal papers, financial records, photographs, telephone and visitor logs, municipal
agency documents, real estate records, position statements and other material, 1966-1984, documenting the activities of the
Pride Foundation, founded in San Francisco in 1973. Pride Foundation was a community organization that provided legal assistance
and educational, health and social services to San Francisco's gay and lesbian community. The collection also includes administrative
records from the Pride Center at 330 Grove, the gay community center founded and operated by the Pride Foundation.
The Pride Foundation was founded on August 8, 1973 in San Francisco and operated by a board of directors. A partial list of
the organization's founders include Zane Thomas, B.J. Beckwith, George Mendenhall, Roberta Buba, Charlotte Coleman, John Wahl,
Perry Wood, Larry Littlejohn and Paul Hardman. Lee Mentley served on the board's executive committee. Their initial application
for tax exempt non-profit status was met with resistance when the Internal Revenue Service concluded that "[the Pride Foundation's]
activities carry a serious risk of contributing to a more widespread development of homosexual tendencies among certain segments
of the public and a consequent increase in the general prevalence of what is still generally regarded as deviant sexual behavior.
As such your activities are contrary to public policy and are therefore, not 'charitable.'" The Foundation disputed that judgement,
however, and their tax exempt status was eventually granted. The Foundation served the gay and lesbian community by providing
direct legal assistance, especially in cases of discrimination and defamation, engaging in educational research, conducting
classes, and providing assistance in social and health services. It provided services such as gay legal referrals, a senior
citizens program, a gay tourist and visitors information bureau, health referrals, a coalition to defend gays in the military,
art classes, drop-in facilities for youth, job placement, and a social group for older men known as G40+. The Foundation
also operated the Top Floor Gallery for local gay artists.
Beginning in 1976, Foundation Chairman Paul Hardman began requesting the use of 330 Grove Street, which was under the ownership
of the San Francisco Redevelopment Agency. A signed agreement of occupancy was negotiated between the Foundation and the
Redevelopment Agency, and the Foundation began operating the Pride Center at 330 Grove, their gay and lesbian community services
center, in December of that year. Pride Center served as the Foundation's offices and also provided low-cost meeting spaces
for other neighborhood organizations. Due to disputes over funding and occupancy of 330 Grove, Hardman, who had been president
and chairman since the organization's founding, was pressured to resign in 1979, increasing internal conflicts in the Foundation's
board. Pride Center later moved to a location at 890 Hayes, and the Foundation attempted for years to raise funds to secure
a permanent site for the Center.
The Pride Foundation discontinued operations in the mid-1980s.
Source:
Pride Foundation Records, Coll2011-071, ONE National Gay & Lesbian Archives, USC Libraries, University of Southern California.
The collection is open to researchers. There are no access restrictions.
All requests for permission to publish or quote from manuscripts must be submitted in writing to the ONE Archivist. Permission
for publication is given on behalf of ONE National Gay and Lesbian Archives at USC Libraries as the owner of the physical
items and is not intended to include or imply permission of the copyright holder, which must also be obtained.
The bulk of the collection was donated by Lee Mentley, date of acquisition unknown.
[Box/folder #, or item name] Pride Foundation Records, Coll2011-071, ONE National Gay & Lesbian Archives, USC Libraries, University
of Southern California.
Formerly boxes 103-049, 103-57C, 104-148, 104-155, and 104-157. Collection processed by Loni Shibuyama with assistance from
Marc LaRocque and Sana Shuja, August 2013.
This collection includes articles of incorporation, bylaws, minutes, correspondence, reports, legal referral documents, contractual
agreements, resolutions, clippings, flyers, publicity material, legal papers, financial records, photographs, telephone and
visitor logs, municipal agency documents, real estate records, position statements and other material, 1966-1984, documenting
the activities of the Pride Foundation and the Pride Center at 330 Grove.
Included are documents from the Foundation's board of directors and executive committee, and incorporation records documenting
the Internal Revenue Services' denial of 501(c)(3) exemption status. The general administrative records document the Foundation's
activities such as services for legal referrals, recovery from substance abuse, job placement, housing placement, and women
and youth; and advocacy efforts such as an anti-defamation project, police-community relations, fair employment projects and
legal cases, and engagement with local and state government on behalf of gay and lesbian rights. The collection also includes
records documenting the founding and daily operations of the Pride Center at 330 Grove in San Francisco--particularly, the
legal and financial struggles to secure a lasting site for the community center.
This collection is arranged in the following series:
Series 1. Incorporation, board of directors and executive committee records
Series 2. Administrative records
Series 3. Pride Center at 330 Grove records
Subjects and Indexing Terms
Gay and lesbian rights
Correspondence
Legal documents
Gay activists -- United States -- California
Legal assistance to gays -- United States
United States -- Legal assistance to lesbians
Gay community -- California -- San Francisco
Gays -- Services for
Lesbians -- Services for
Clippings
Discrimination in employment
Lesbian activists
Pride Center
Littlejohn, Larry
Hardman, Paul D.
Pride Foundation (San Francisco, Calif.)
Mentley, Lee