Collection Guide
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Los Angeles LGBT Center records
Coll2020-008
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Table of contents
Contributing Institution:
ONE Archives at the USC Libraries, University of Southern California
Title: Los Angeles LGBT Center records
Creator:
L.A. Gay & Lesbian Center
Identifier/Call Number: Coll2020-008
Physical Description:
120 Linear Feet
104 boxes.
Date (inclusive): 1971-2019
Abstract: The Los Angeles LGBT Center collection, 1971-2019, documents the business and work of the Center, covering a broad range of
activities and functions including general business operations and administration; LGBTQ advocacy and activism efforts; theatrical
and art events; fundraising; and social and health services. Materials include records, correspondence, public relations and
marketing materials, flyers, posters, programs, ephemera, photographs, negatives, VHS tapes, CDs, DVDs, and other media.
Language of Material: Language of materials is in English, unless otherwise noted.
The collection is arranged into nine series based on content and/or format.
Series 1: Administration and Business Records;
Series 2: Advocacy;
Series 3: Cultural Arts;
Series 4: Events;
Series 5: Health Services;
Series 6: Social Services;
Series 7: Photographs and Negatives;
Series 8: Audiovisual and Media;
Series 9: Realia, Textiles, and Ephemera.
The Center was founded in 1969, by Don Kilhefner and Morris Kight and other lesbian and gay activists, some of whom were also
part of the Los Angeles Chapter of the Gay Liberation Front (GLF). Originally called the Gay Community Services Center, the
original center opened in October of 1971 in an old Victorian house on Wilshire Boulevard and was the first non-profit in
America to have the word "gay" in its name. Services were provided free of charge, with the exception of housing for which
a nominal per diem fee was charged. In accordance with the founders' concept of "community," the Center was staffed entirely
by gays and lesbians, most of whom were volunteers.
Since 1969 the Los Angeles LGBT Center has cared for, championed, and celebrated LGBT individuals and families in Los Angeles
and beyond.
In 2014, the Center changed its name from the Los Angeles Gay and Lesbian Center to the Los Angeles LGBT Center.
In the 21st century, the Center employs more than 800 people and offers programs, services, and global advocacy that span
four broad categories:
Health: including primary care, HIV/AIDS research and care, counseling, and addiction recovery.
Social services and housing: including homeless youth support; emergency shelter and transitional housing; support services
for seniors, hate crime survivors, and domestic violence survivors; and family and youth services.
Culture and education: including performances and exhibitions on the Center's stages and galleries; the LGBT charter high
school; GED and continuing education programs; and community meeting and event spaces.
Leadership and advocacy: including political and civil rights advocacy; suicide prevention programs; technical support and
assistance to sister organizations; LGBT cultural competency trainings; and mentoring and training programs.
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.
Immediate Source of Acquisition
Gift of Jim Key, on behalf of the Los Angeles LGBT Center, August 28, 2014.
[Box/folder #, or item name] Los Angeles LGBT Center Records, Coll2020-008, ONE National Gay and Lesbian Archives, USC Libraries,
University of Southern California.
Processing this collection has been funded by a generous grant from the California State Library. Collection processed by
Beth McDonald, 2020-2021.
The Los Angeles LGBT Center collection covers a broad range of activities and functions of the Los Angeles LGBT Center during
the 1980s, 1990s, and early 2000s. It includes business and administration of the Center, LGBTQ advocacy and activism efforts,
theatrical and art events, fundraising, and social and health services. Materials include records, correspondence, public
relations and marketing materials, flyers, posters, programs, ephemera, photographs, negatives, VHS tapes, CDs, DVDs, and
other media.
Lillene H. Fifield Papers, Coll2007-014, ONE National Gay & Lesbian Archives, USC Libraries, University of Southern California.
Jim Long Papers, Coll2007-011, ONE National Gay & Lesbian Archives, USC Libraries, University of Southern California.
L. A. Gay & Lesbian Center Records, Coll2007-010, ONE National Gay & Lesbian Archives, USC Libraries, University of Southern
California.
Los Angeles Gay and Lesbian Community Services Center Queer CyberCenter Records, Coll2013-045, ONE National Gay & Lesbian
Archives, USC Libraries, University of Southern California.
Hugh Rice Los Angeles Gay and Lesbian Community Services Center Records, Coll2013-044, ONE National Gay & Lesbian Archives,
USC Libraries, University of Southern California.
Subjects and Indexing Terms
AIDS (Disease) -- Patients, Services for -- California -- Los Angeles County
Community-based social services -- California -- Archival resources
Community centers -- California -- Los Angeles
Community health services -- California
Gay culture
Gays -- Alcohol use
Gays -- California -- Los Angeles
Gays -- Services for
Human rights advocacy
Lesbians -- Alcohol use
Lesbians -- Services for
Social advocacy -- California -- Archival resources
Social work with gays
Social work with lesbians
Jean, Lorri, 1957-
Kight, Morris, 1919-2003
Kilhefner, Don
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