Happy Pride 2018! This LGBTQ Pride Month, The New York Public Library will host Roxane Gay, Tim Gunn, and Eileen Myles, as well as drag queens, film screenings, workshops, and discussions. Check out these events for all ages, and happy #RainbowReading!

Update: Check out photos of NYPL staff members marching in the NYC Pride March! 

#RainbowReading: 30 Books for Pride Month 2018

June is the American Library Association's GLBT Book Month.  To celebrate, The New York Public Library's  staff members are bringing awareness to recently published books featuring LGBTQ+ characters by presenting daily book recommendations. Follow #RainbowReading on social media for daily reading recommendations, and click here for a round-up of our staff picks!

 

 

Playlists

Broadway Pride Playlist
Celebrating Pride? Enjoy this playlist of songs from LGBTQ-themed musicals, curated by the programming staff at The Library for the Performing Arts.

Pride Events

6/1: First Friday Matinees: Pariah In celebration of LGBTQ Pride Month, join us for a screening of award-winning director Dee Rees’s (Mudbound, Bessie) debut feature film, which follows the coming-out experience of seventeen-year-old Alike, played by Adepero Oduye, who lives in Fort Greene with her parents and younger sister. The film is “stunningly shot,” writes Grace Barber-Plentie for BFI, showcasing the innovative cinematography of Bradford Young. 1:00 PM, Ottendorfer Library.

6/1: Schomburg First Fridays: LGBT Pride Edition We’re excited to kick off LGBT Pride Month at the Schomburg Center with our third annual First Fridays: Gay Pride Edition and with recognition of our In the Life Archive, a collection of materials of and by black LGBT people throughout history preserved in our Manuscripts, Archives and Rare Books Division. With our extended hours, guests are also invited to check out our 3 exhibitions Black Power, Unshackled Ink and InHarlem Firelei Báez: Joy out of Fire (opening May 1st). Join us. 6:00 PM, Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture.

6/2: Drag Queen Story Hour Join us for a program for children aged 3-8 that raises awareness of gender diversity, promotes self-acceptance, and builds empathy through an engaging literary experience. In this 45-minute program, a fabulous drag queen trained by children’s librarians reads picture books, sings songs, and leads children in a simple craft activity. Children love the bright colors, glamorous outfits, and larger-than-life personalities of the drag queen performers, but more importantly, DQSH teaches children to accept and celebrate gender diversity in themselves and others, and helps to curb bullying of LGBTQ children. Presented by Harmonica Sunbeam. 2:00 PM, Hamilton Grange Library, Children's Room.

6/5: Sick: Porochista Khakpour with Eileen Myles In her new memoir, Sick, Porochista Khakpour recounts a lifetime of misdiagnoses that left her riddled with anxiety about an unknown cause. When she ultimately learns of her late-stage Lyme disease, she embarks on an arduous and emotional quest for a cure that takes her from New York to Los Angeles, New Mexico, and Germany, all the while meditating on the physical and psychological impacts of uncertainty, and the eventual challenge of accepting the diagnosis she had searched for over the course of her adult life. “This is a book that throws me into the time of my own being,” writes poet and novelist Eileen Myles. “Sick is something gut-wrenching and new, a globally intimate book.” They join Khakpour for a conversation about what it takes to write one’s way through illness. 6:30 PM, Stephen A. Schwarzman Building.

6/8: Tim Gunn and Min Jin Lee: Notes from the Reading Life A fashion icon shares recommendations and memories of the books that inspired him throughout his career. Tim Gunn is the Emmy Award-winning host and producer of the hit series Project Runway and Project Runway Junior. He is a New York Times best-selling author for his books Tim Gunn: A Guide to Quality, Taste and Style, Gunn’s Golden Rules: Life’s Little Lessons for Making It Work, and Tim Gunn’s Fashion Bible: The Fascinating History of Everything in Your Closet. Gunn will speak with National Book Award finalist, Min Jin Lee, whose novel Pachinko was named by the New York Times as one of the “10 Best Books of 2017.” Pachinko was a selection in the best books of the year lists of NPR, Publishers Weekly, Kirkus Reviews, Amazon, Goodreads, Esquire, BookPage, Book Riot, Refinery29, Chicago Public Library, and many others.  Notes from the Reading Life is a program co-presented by the National Book Foundation and The New York Public Library, supported, in part, by public funds from the New York City Department of Cultural Affairs. 6:30 PM, Jefferson Market Library.

6/9: Anti-Prom 2018: Under the Sea Anti-Prom provides an alternative, safe space regardless of your sexuality, gender identity, the way you dress, or any other reason. Come dance the night away at the Library and check out the Under the Sea-inspired fashions created by NYPL's teen designers. Student ID is required for entry to Anti-Prom. Only teens ages 12 to 18 will be admitted. All bags must be checked upon arrival. Doors close at 8 PM. 6:30 PM, Stephen A. Schwarzman Building.

6/9: LGBT Philosophy Forum For over 15 years the Forum has provided the LGBT community and its friends an open opportunity to gather and informally discuss important works of philosophy. We meet monthly on the second Saturday, from 2:45 to 4:45 p.m. The texts to be discussed (up to 50 pages) or links to the texts can be found on our website. All are welcome. We hope you will join us. 2:45 PM, Muhlenberg Library, Conference Room.

6/11: Movie Monday: Homo Promo (1993) Monday, June 11, 3:00 PM Not Rated , 57 Min How did Hollywood pitch movies about gays and lesbians between 1953 and 1977? Here are theatrical trailers for 27 mainstream and art-house films, presented chronologically from "Tea and Sympathy" to "Outrageous!" **Subtitles will be put on to accommodate all movie-goers. 3:00 PM, 67th Street Library.

6/11: Live from the NYPL: Roxane Gay with Aja Monet: Not That Bad In her latest book, Not That Bad: Dispatches from Rape Culture, Roxane Gay brings together an incredible array of women to share first-person essays that directly tackle rape, assault, and harassment. The book asks what it means to live in a world where women have to measure the harassment, violence, and aggression they face, and where they are “routinely second-guessed, blown off, discredited, denigrated, besmirched, belittled, patronized, mocked, shamed, gaslit, insulted, bullied” for speaking out. 7:00 PM, Stephen A. Schwarzman Building, Celeste Bartos Forum.

6/12: Documentary "PRIDE" Tuesday Let’s have a discussion! Join us for a Harlem based documentary, and a short and a short Discussion. Tuesday June 12, 2018 "The New Black: LGBT Rights in African American Communities" THE NEW BLACK boldy examines the controversial and challenging issues the African-American community is grappling with the gay rights issue in light of the recent gay marriage movement and the fight over civil rights. The film documents activists, families and clergy on both sides of the campaign to legali… 4:00 PM, Countee Cullen Library, Auditorium.

6/12: Shall We Wed: Financial Planning for Same Sex Households The Supreme Court ruling in Obergefell v. Hodges in 2015 made same sex marriage the legal in all 50 states. What does this mean for those who are not married or are considering marriage? Marriage is a very personal decision with important legal and financial implications, especially for households considering a family with children, whether by foster parenting, adoption, surrogacy, or in vitro fertilization. Thom Chu, J.D. discusses how legal marriage might affect you - for better or worse! Tho… 6:00 PM, Science, Industry and Business Library (SIBL), Conference Room 018.

6/13: Researching LGBT History with NYPL's E-Resources This class will teach researchers about the electronic resources available from the New York Public Library that focus on LGBT history. Specifically, researchers will explore the databases: Archives of Sexuality and Gender, which contains 18 digitized archival collections exploring LGBTQ history and culture since 1940; LGBT Life with Full Text, which provides complete indexing and abstracting of content related to gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender studies in over 230 journals, magazines, and newspapers; Independent Voices, a collection of alternative press publications from the 1950s to the present; and finally the Alternative Press Index, which indexes more than 300 alternative, radical, and left publications. 11:00 AM, Stephen A. Schwarzman Building, South Court Classroom B.

6/14: Researching LGBT History with NYPL's E-Resources This class will teach researchers about the electronic resources available from the New York Public Library that focus on LGBT history. Specifically, researchers will explore the databases: Archives of Sexuality and Gender, which contains 18 digitized archival collections exploring LGBTQ history and culture since 1940; LGBT Life with Full Text, which provides complete indexing and abstracting of content related to gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender studies in over 230 journals, magazines, and newspapers; Independent Voices, a collection of alternative press publications from the 1950s to the present; and finally the Alternative Press Index, which indexes more than 300 alternative, radical, and left publications. 2:00 PM, Stephen A. Schwarzman Building, South Court Classroom B.

6/14: Mermaid Parade and Drag Queen Story Hour Kick off Summer Reading with an under the sea themed celebration and get everything you need to make reading rock! Featuring Drag Queen Story Hour, followed by a mermaid parade through the library! Wear your sea themed costumes or make one at the library. Don’t miss out on yummy snacks, fun goodies, and rockin’ books! Best for Children 0-7. 3:00 PM, St. Agnes.

6/14: Summer Reading Kick Off: Drag Queen Story Hour A program for children aged 3-8 that raises awareness of gender diversity, promotes self-acceptance, and builds empathy through an enjoyable literary experience. In this 45-minute program, a drag queen trained by children’s librarians reads picture books, sings songs, and leads children in a simple craft activity. Children love the bright colors, glamorous outfits, and larger-than-life personalities of the drag queen performers, but more importantly, DQSH teaches children to accept and celebrate… 3:30 PM, St. Agnes Library.

6/15: Summer Reading Kick Off: Drag Queen Story Hour A program for children aged 3-8 that raises awareness of gender diversity, promotes self-acceptance, and builds empathy through an enjoyable literary experience. In this 45-minute program, a drag queen trained by children’s librarians reads picture books, sings songs, and leads children in a simple craft activity. Children love the bright colors, glamorous outfits, and larger-than-life personalities of the drag queen performers, but more importantly, DQSH teaches children to accept and celebrate… 11:00 AM, Epiphany Library.

6/15: Art Express: Zine Making Calling all creatives and art lovers alike! Actualize your ideas and inspirations into one-of-a-kind art pieces. Zine Making Workshop June marks the celebration of Immigrant Heritage and Pride Month. June marks the celebration of Immigrant Heritage and Pride Month. Join us in creating zines that explore and celebrate your unique identity and history. In this workshop, participants will be able to learn how to use the Picture Collection to do visual research. Registration required. 2:00 PM, Mid-Manhattan Library at 42nd Street.

6/15: NYC Trans Oral History Project Presents Trans Lives in Sex Work How Trans People of Color Survive and Struggle in Sex Work TY Williams, Kiara St. James (NYTAG), and Ceyenne Doroshow (GLITS) Join us for Trans Lives and Sex Work: How Trans People of Color Survive and Struggle in Sex Work, stories from the NYC Trans Oral History Project. The NYC Trans Oral History Project has gathered and posted over 90 oral history recordings with trans New Yorkers. Many of these stories include accounts of trans people using sex work to economically survive, and the difficulties they faced of violence, criminalization, police harassment, and stigma. Join us for an evening hearing the stories of trans sex work activists. They’ll discuss how and why trans people do sex work, the experiences they have, and the changing landscape faced by trans sex workers. 6:00 PM, Jefferson Market Library.

6/16: Movie of the Month: Check It This film festival favorite follows a group of African-American gay and transgender youth in one of Wasthington D.C's most violent neighborhoods. After being subjected to constant torment and assault, the group formed their own gang for camaraderie and protection. Official selection at the Tribeca Film Festival, Hot Docs Canadian International Documentary Festival, and the San Francisco International Film Festival. 1:00 PM, Huguenot Park Library.

6/18: Movie Monday: Coming Out: A 50 Year History (2017) Monday, June 18, 3:00 PM Not Rated , 57 Min Transgender teen, Jazz Jennings, narrates this one hour documentary exploring the history of public gay identity in the Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender (LGBT) community from the 1950s through today. **Subtitles will be put on to accommodate all movie-goers. No Registration. 3:00 PM, 67th Street Library.

6/20: Has the Gay Movement Failed? Martin Duberman with Jason Baumann Despite fifty years of LGBTQ progress, activists' more radical goals may have fallen by the wayside. In the years since Stonewall, there has been a gradual shift in both cultural attitudes and U.S. government policy. According to Martin Duberman, this shift has been more broad and conservative than deep and transformative. A renowned historian and activist of the American left and LGBTQ movements, Duberman recounts the progressive vision for society as a whole and critiques the left's failure to embrace the queer potential for social transformation. Not without hope, Duberman's history lesson can shine a light towards a truly inclusive and expansive society. 6:30 PM, Mid-Manhattan Library at 42nd Street, Program Room.

6/25: Movie Monday: The Birdcage (1996) A gay cabaret owner and his drag queen companion agree to put up a false straight front so that their son can introduce them to his fiancée's right-wing moralistic parents. 3:00 PM, 67th Street Library.

6/25: Sofari So Goody with Jacqueline Jonée If you missed or want to see again the original sold-out presentation of Sofari So Goody join Jacqueline Jonée for an up-close-and-personal screening of her 2011 HD video presented on the stage of the Bruno Walter Auditorium. Joined by the JouJou Jacquettes Philharmonic Orchestra, Jacqueline Jonée has her hilarious ups and downs with her glamorous celebrity status and mid-life crisis as she navigates Gay Pride Celebrations in New York City. The screening will be followed by a live appearance by Ms. Jonée and a question-and-answer period. 6:00 PM, New York Public Library for the Performing Arts, Dorothy and Lewis B. Cullman Center, Bruno Walter Auditorium.

6/26: Documentary PRIDE Tuesday Let’s have a discussion! Join us for a Harlem based documentary, and a short Discussion. We're celebrating PRIDE week at Countee Cullen. Join us for a screening of Shape Up: Gay in the Black Barbershop After, a discussion with Film maker Derrick L. Middleton. Derrick L. Middleton, 2018, 28 min. Shape Up: Gay in the Black Barbershop is a documentary short set in Harlem, NYC. 6:00 PM, Countee Cullen Library, Auditorium.

6/27: Film Screening: The Adventures of Priscilla, Queen of the Desert Two drag performers and a transgender woman travel across the Australian desert to perform their unique style of cabaret. Starring Hugo Weaving, Guy Pearce, Terence Stamp. 5:00 PM, Tompkins Square Library, Basement.

6/28: Celebrate LOVE during pride month!: Accessible dating apps and online dating Join us to learn about accessible options for online dating and dating apps and how to navigate them using assistive technology. 5:15 PM, Andrew Heiskell Braille and Talking Book.

6/28: LGBTQ Pride Month - 16mm Film Screening: Some Of Your Best Friends Christopher Street Liberation Day, June 20, 1971 Please join us for a special 16mm film screening from the special collections of the NYPL for the Performing Arts. Screening starts promptly at 6pm. Some Of Your Best Friends (1971; 40mins.) Dir: Ken Robinson. Chronicles some of the first pride parades and gatherings of queer groups at the forefront of the movement post-Stonewall. Some of Your Best Friends starts with the Hollywood Gay Pride Parade of 1970 and ends with the Venice, CA Gay Liberation front in its protest and takeover of a meeting of psychologists at the Biltmore Hotel; there to see how to use aversion therapy to treat homosexuality. 6:00 PM, Tompkins Square Library, Basement.

7/5: The 1960s: LPA PRESENTS: Martin Worman and The Cockettes Grand Central Library is kicking off its partnership with the Library for the Performing Arts with a presentation on the life and career of Martin Worman. An actor, playwright, lyricist, director, female impersonator, activist, and academic—Martin Worman did it all. This presentation focuses on Woman’s work as a writer and performer with The Cockettes, an improvisational troupe instrumental in the gay liberation movement of the 1960s and 1970s. Incorporating rarely seen footage and exclusive materials from LPA’s collection, this presentation is a must for anyone interested in the performance art of the 1960s underground. This program is for adults. 6:30 PM, Grand Central.

Exhibition

You Say You Want a Revolution: Remembering the 60s Discover the counterculture of the 1960s and 70s in this comprehensive exhibition at the Library’s Stephen A. Schwarzman Building at 42nd Street. Part of a citywide celebration of the 1960s, this exhibition explores the breadth and significance of this pivotal era—from communal living and forays into expanded consciousness to tensions around race, politics, sexuality, and the environment. Items on display, drawn exclusively from the Library’s collections, include Timothy Leary’s notes on acid trips, footage of the Woodstock music festival, and posters used in protest against the Vietnam War.

More Resources

If you want to read, learn, and discover more, please browse our selection of LGBTQ books or read our 2017 Pride book lists: 30 books for adults, 30 books for teens, and 30 books for kids.  You can also browse our Digital Collections. And if you're interested in researching this topic, the Library has over 100 collections related to gay and lesbian history in our Manuscripts and Archives Division. Plus, you can check out what other libraries across the country are doing as part of the ALA's GLBT Book Month initiative. Come join us in celebrating LGBTQ Pride!