Houston GLBT Community Center

Last updated
Houston GLBT Community Center
FormationMarch 23, 1996 (1996-03-23)
Headquarters Houston, Texas
The Dow School in the Sixth Ward was the headquarters DowSchoolHouston1.jpg
The Dow School in the Sixth Ward was the headquarters

The Houston GLBT Community Center was a community center for gay, lesbian, bisexual, and transgender people and their allies in the Houston metropolitan area and southeast Texas. Its last location was in the Dow School building in the Sixth Ward of Houston. [1]

Contents

The Center was a nonprofit all-volunteer nonprofit organization whose mission was "to empower, educate, and nurture individuals of diverse sexual orientations and gender identities, generating a sense of community by providing for their social, emotional, and physical well being." [2]

Programs

The Center provided programs in five broad areas:

  1. Arts and culture
  2. Collaborations with other organizations
  3. Education and public policy [3] [4]
  4. Information resources [5]
  5. Support groups/Leadership development

The Center maintained the John Lawrence and Tyrone Garner Scholarship Fund of the Houston GLBT Community Center. Each year in June, the Center awarded these scholarships through the fund established in honor of John Lawrence and the late Tyrone Garner, who were the co-petitioners in the landmark Lawrence v. Texas case. The 2003 Supreme Court decision in that case overturned sodomy laws in the United States. The initial press conference after the ruling (with over 40 national and international media representatives present) was held at the Center and the rally at City Hall was organized by the Center. [6]

The Center hosted a weekly coming-out group for gay, lesbian, bisexual, transgender, and questioning individuals, a monthly First Saturday Queer Bingo and art shows at the Center and throughout Houston, [ citation needed ] and facilitated the quarterly Community Leaders Networking Group as well as the Houston GLBT Business Council.

It also provided low-cost and free meeting and office space to eligible nonprofits. Numerous Houston organizations have previously had office space at the Center, including Hatch Youth (formerly H.A.T.C.H., now a program of the Montrose Center); Houston chapter of Parents, Families and Friends of Lesbians and Gays (P-FLAG); Pride Committee of Houston; Q-Patrol; Greater Houston GLBT Chamber of Commerce; Houston GLBT Political Caucus; the Black Lesbian and Gay Coalition; the Texas Human Rights Foundation; Southern Poverty Law Center; and the LGBT Switchboard (formerly Gay and Lesbian Switchboard Houston; now a program of the Montrose Center). Ladies and Gentlemen of Art, a group focusing on African-American GLBT artists, and A Community United, a group focusing on providing housing on HIV positive individuals, were some of the last organizations to have offices at the Center. [7]

History

The Center was founded as the Houston Lesbian and Gay Community Center in 1996 by a group of activists. The Center moved into its first facility at 803 Hawthorne Avenue in March 1998 during the administration of Brian J. Tognotti, the first president of the Center, [8] [ verification needed ] and moved a suite at 3400 Montrose Boulevard in early 2003 during the first presidency of Timothy Brookover. [8] In 2003, under the leadership of then Center president Burton Bagby-Grose, the name and mission statement were changed to include bisexual and transgender people. [8] In 2010, after the mid-rise 3400 Montrose building was condemned, the center relocated to the Dow School Building in Houston's historic Sixth Ward district. [9] Coinciding with its 15th anniversary, the center was named Organization Grand Marshal of Pride Houston's annual LGBT pride parade. [10]

The Montrose Center (formerly Montrose Counseling Center) is widely recognized as the primary gathering place for LGBT-oriented organizations in and around Houston. [11]

See also

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Pink triangle</span> Nazi concentration camp badge, later international symbol of gay pride and the gay rights movements

A pink triangle has been a symbol for the LGBT community, initially intended as a badge of shame, but later reappropriated as a positive symbol of self-identity. In Nazi Germany in the 1930s and 1940s, it began as one of the Nazi concentration camp badges, distinguishing those imprisoned because they had been identified by authorities as gay men or trans women. In the 1970s, it was revived as a symbol of protest against homophobia, and has since been adopted by the larger LGBT community as a popular symbol of LGBT pride and the LGBT movements and queer liberation movements.

The Utah Pride Center (UPC) is a tax-exempt nonprofit organization in Salt Lake City. It provides services, events and activities to lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBTQ) people in Utah. The center manages annual and ongoing projects including the Utah Pride Festival.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">San Francisco Pride</span> Annual LGBTQ+ event in San Francisco, California

The San Francisco Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender Pride Celebration, usually known as San Francisco Pride, is a pride parade and festival held at the end of June most years in San Francisco, California, to celebrate the lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) people.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual & Transgender Community Center</span> LGBT community organization in New York City

The Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual & Transgender Community Center, commonly called The Center, is a nonprofit organization serving the lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBTQ) population of New York City and nearby communities.

QFest, formerly known as the Houston Gay & Lesbian Film Festival (HGLFF), is a nonprofit organization based in Houston, Texas, dedicated to promoting the media arts as a tool for communication and cooperation among diverse communities by presenting films, videos, and programs by, about, or of interest to the LGBTQ community.

The Queer Student Cultural Center is the current incarnation of the coming out, gay, lesbian, bisexual, transgender, genderqueer, intersex, and allied communities organization of the University of Minnesota campuses that has been active since May 1969.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">LGBT movements in the United States</span>

LGBT movements in the United States comprise an interwoven history of lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and allied social movements in the United States of America, beginning in the early 20th century. A commonly stated goal among these movements is social equality for LGBT people. Some have also focused on building LGBT communities or worked towards liberation for the broader society from biphobia, homophobia, and transphobia. LGBT movements organized today are made up of a wide range of political activism and cultural activity, including lobbying, street marches, social groups, media, art, and research. Sociologist Mary Bernstein writes: "For the lesbian and gay movement, then, cultural goals include challenging dominant constructions of masculinity and femininity, homophobia, and the primacy of the gendered heterosexual nuclear family (heteronormativity). Political goals include changing laws and policies in order to gain new rights, benefits, and protections from harm." Bernstein emphasizes that activists seek both types of goals in both the civil and political spheres.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">GLBT Historical Society</span> American non-profit LGBT historical society

The GLBT Historical Society maintains an extensive collection of archival materials, artifacts and graphic arts relating to the history of LGBTQ people in the United States, with a focus on the LGBT communities of San Francisco and Northern California.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Gulf Coast Archive and Museum</span> Archive and museum

The Gulf Coast Archive and Museum of Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual and Transgender History, Inc. (GCAM) is an LGBT history organization located in Houston. It was previously in Neartown.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Campus Pride</span>

Campus Pride is an American national nonprofit 501(c)(3) organization founded by M. Chad Wilson, Sarah E. Holmes and Shane L. Windmeyer in 2001 which serves lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) and ally student leaders and/or campus organization in the areas of leadership development, support programs and services to create safer, more inclusive LGBT-friendly colleges and universities.

Sally Huffer is an American LGBT activist that resides in Houston.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">LGBTQ Aggies</span> Student group at Texas A&M University

Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, and Queer Aggies is an officially recognized student group at Texas A&M University. Originally known as Gay Student Services (GSS) and later as Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual, and Transgender Aggies, the organization was officially recognized by Texas A&M University in 1985 after a lengthy court battle.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Pride Center of Maryland</span> Nonprofit organization

The Pride Center of Maryland, formerly the Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual, and Transgender Community Center of Baltimore and Central Maryland, is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization serving the lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender population of Baltimore and the Baltimore metropolitan area, located at 2418 Saint Charles Street in Baltimore.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">David Bohnett Foundation</span>

The David Bohnett Foundation is a private foundation that gives grants to organizations that focus on its core giving areas – primarily Los Angeles area programs and LGBT rights in the United States, as well as leadership initiatives and voter education, gun violence prevention, and animal language research. It was founded by David Bohnett in 1999. As of 2022, the foundation has donated $125 million to nonprofit organizations and initiatives.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">LGBTQ culture in Houston</span>

Houston has a large and diverse LGBT population and is home to the 4th largest gay pride parade in the nation. Houston has the largest LGBT population of any city in the state of Texas.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Twin Cities Pride</span>

Twin Cities Pride, sometimes Twin Cities LGBT Pride, is an American nonprofit organization in Minnesota that hosts an annual celebration each June that focuses on the LGBT community. The celebration features a pride parade which draws crowds of nearly 600,000 people. The parade was designated the Ashley Rukes GLBT Pride Parade in honor of the late former parade organizer and transgender LGBT rights activist. Other Twin Cities Pride events include a festival in Loring Park and a block party spanning multiple days.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Montrose Center</span> LGBT health organization in Houston, Texas

The Montrose Center is an LGBTQ community center located in Houston, Texas, in the United States. The organization provides an array of programs and services for the LGBTQ community, including mental and behavioral health, anti-violence services, support groups, specialized services for youth, seniors, and those living with HIV, community meeting space, and it now operates the nation's largest LGBTQ-affirming, affordable, senior living center in the nation, the Law Harrington Senior Living Center. It is a member of the National Coalition of Anti-Violence Programs. It is in Neartown (Montrose).

References

  1. ↑ "glbtcc_banner_V4.png Archived 2014-05-19 at the Wayback Machine " (Archive). Houston GLBT Community Center. Retrieved on May 9, 2014. "In The Historic Dow School Old Sixth Ward Historic District 1900 Kane Street, Houston, Texas 77007"
  2. ↑ Corporation by-laws
  3. ↑ Christian, Carol (25 July 2000). "Hate crimes panelists addressed underreporting / Lesbian, gay center sponsors forum". Houston Chronicle. Retrieved 4 May 2010.
  4. ↑ Taffet, David (11 February 2010). "Gay refugees safer in U.S., but still not safe enough". Dallas Voice. Retrieved 4 May 2010.[ permanent dead link ]
  5. ↑ Taffet, David (8 March 2010). "Gay Iraqis Find Texas". South Florida Gay News. Retrieved 4 May 2010.
  6. ↑ Queer Music Heritage, produced by JD Doyle (June 2003). "Supreme Court Ruling, June 26, 2003" . Retrieved 3 May 2010.
  7. ↑ Walton Sieber, Ann (January 2001). "Community Center". OutSmart. Archived from the original on October 9, 2009. Retrieved 3 May 2010.
  8. 1 2 3 Corporation minutes
  9. ↑ Thomson, Steven (20 October 2010). "Out of the closet and into the ward: GLBT Community Center moves on from Montrose". CultureMap Houston. Retrieved 18 September 2014.
  10. ↑ "Pride Grand Marshals". Pride Houston. Pride Houston, Inc. Retrieved 18 September 2014.
  11. ↑ "the Montrose Center: Houston's LGBT center!". the Montrose Center. Retrieved 18 September 2014.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.