Last week’s readings hosted by the Black Gay and Lesbian Archive at the Schomburg Center were a tremendous success. Above are pictured Pamela Sneed, Linda Villarosa, and Cheryl Clarke during the Q&A after their reading on August 18th. The readings were held in the Manuscripts, Archives and Rare Books Reading Room (you can see newly acquired boxes for processing in the back…). For more pictures click through below. (more…)

We have been busy this summer negotiating the acquisition of many gift collections, large and small. This week we were thrilled to recieve the backfiles of Pinups from photographer, editor, and provocateur Christopher Schulz. Pinups is a gorgeous, smart, tender new magazine that shows the beauty of everyday gay men. The aesthetic has been called “post-bear,” but it’s actually very 1970’s. It reminds me of After Dark and New York City gay street culture in the early days of Gay Liberation. Pinups is also, really, a very smart piece of conceptual art pretending to be a magazine. Check it out.

We are also working on acquiring a complete backfile of HX and Next magazines, a collection of Japanese erotica, a visual diary, and a historic drag performance collection, among many others. These are all the kinds of key historical materials that will be needed to understand LGBT life in our times. More to come as things are finalized.

We are truly saddened to hear the news today of the passing of pioneering lesbian activist Del Martin. Del and her partner Phyllis Lyon were instrumental in the founding of the Daughters of Bilitis, the first national lesbian organization in the United States. Martin and Lyon were historically married in California this June after 55 years of love and activism together. Their work together ranged from the Daughters of Bilitis and editing The Ladder, to work with NOW, and more recently serving as delegates to the White House Conference on Aging.  They authored the classics Lesbian/Woman and Lesbian Love and Liberation. We send our deepest condolences to Phyllis Lyon, and their families and friends. For more information see the coverage in the San Fransisco Chronicle, Edge Boston, and gay.com.

Del Martin and Phyllis Lyon are pictured above in a photograph by Kay Tobin Lahusen profiling them in her book The Gay Crusaders.