ONE National Gay & Lesbian Archives

ONE National Gay & Lesbian Archives
Name	ONE National Gay & Lesbian Archives
Established	1952
Location	Los Angeles, California
Type	LGBT archive
Director	Paul Martinez

ONE National Gay & Lesbian Archives

ONE National Gay & Lesbian Archives is an independent archival repository and research center in Los Angeles focused on LGBT history in the United States, Lesbian history, Gay history, Bisexual history, and Transgender history. Founded by activists associated with the Mattachine Society and the Daughters of Bilitis, the archive preserves papers, photographs, periodicals, and ephemera documenting movements, organizations, and individuals such as Harry Hay, Del Martin, Phyllis Lyon, Bayard Rustin, and Marsha P. Johnson. The institution engages with scholars, journalists, filmmakers, and community members researching topics related to Stonewall riots, Compton's Cafeteria riot, Harvey Milk, Alan Turing, and other pivotal figures and events.

History

The archive traces origins to the privately circulated periodicals and organizational records of the Mattachine Society and the Daughters of Bilitis, linking to early West Coast activism led by figures including Harry Hay, Ralph Werder, Del Martin, and Phyllis Lyon. During the 1960s and 1970s the collection expanded to include materials related to the Stonewall riots, Gay Liberation Front, and activists such as Vito Russo, Sylvia Rivera, Marsha P. Johnson, and Frank Kameny. In subsequent decades the archive absorbed records from lesbian organizations like National Organization for Women-adjacent projects, gay rights campaigns involving HIV/AIDS activism groups such as ACT UP, and political figures including Harvey Milk, Eleanor Roosevelt (related collections), and Bayard Rustin. Institutional milestones intersect with partnerships with universities including University of Southern California, UCLA, and the University of California, Los Angeles library system, as well as collaborations with cultural institutions like the Smithsonian Institution, the Getty Research Institute, and the Library of Congress on exhibition loans.

Collections and holdings

Holdings encompass manuscripts, organizational records, personal papers, oral histories, periodicals, photographs, posters, audiovisual recordings, and ephemera documenting activists and cultural figures such as Audre Lorde, Allen Ginsberg, James Baldwin, Langston Hughes, Tennessee Williams, and Edie Windsor. The archive maintains significant collections from LGBT organizations and campaigns including Mattachine Society, Daughters of Bilitis, Gay Liberation Front, ACT UP, Human Rights Campaign, Lambda Legal, GLAAD, and National LGBTQ Task Force. Political and legal materials relate to landmark cases and laws involving Obergefell v. Hodges, Romer v. Evans, Lawrence v. Texas, and legislative efforts by figures like Barack Obama and Bill Clinton on issues such as military service and marriage equality. The audiovisual archive holds footage and interviews with cultural contributors including Dorothy Allison, Toni Morrison (relevant materials), Ellen DeGeneres, RuPaul Charles, Andy Warhol, and Keith Haring. International and comparative materials touch on activists such as Peter Tatchell, Marsha P. Johnson's contemporaries, and events like the Sydney Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras.

Programs and exhibitions

Public programs and rotating exhibitions have featured curated shows on pioneers like Bayard Rustin, Del Martin, and Phyllis Lyon; themed exhibitions on AIDS Memorial Quilt history and Stonewall riots; and multimedia installations addressing art by Robert Mapplethorpe, David Wojnarowicz, Felix Gonzalez-Torres, and Nan Goldin. Educational programming includes lectures and panels with scholars like John D'Emilio, Estelle B. Freedman, Lillian Faderman, and Susan Sontag (materials), and collaborations with filmmakers such as Jennie Livingston and D.A. Pennebaker for screening series. Outreach partnerships extend to community festivals like Los Angeles Pride, museum initiatives with Museum of Contemporary Art, Los Angeles, and archival workshops with American Library Association and Society of American Archivists.

Research and accessibility

The research center provides access to scholars, students, and journalists examining topics connected to courts and cases such as Obergefell v. Hodges and Lawrence v. Texas, political campaigns involving Harvey Milk and Ellen DeGeneres, and cultural histories featuring Audre Lorde, James Baldwin, and Toni Morrison materials. Reference services support dissertations by scholars like Estelle B. Freedman and John D'Emilio, and the archive contributes to catalogs used by institutions including the Library of Congress, National Archives and Records Administration, Getty Research Institute, and university libraries at UCLA and USC. Accessibility initiatives include digitized finding aids for collections related to Marsha P. Johnson, Sylvia Rivera, Vito Russo, and the AIDS Coalition to Unleash Power (ACT UP), and community oral history projects partnering with organizations like StoryCorps and The HistoryMakers.

Affiliations and partnerships

The archive maintains institutional affiliations and partnerships with university archives and libraries, including UCLA Library, University of Southern California Special Collections, and the California State Library, as well as cultural institutions such as the Smithsonian Institution, the Getty Research Institute, and the Los Angeles County Museum of Art. Collaborations extend to advocacy and service organizations like Lambda Legal, GLAAD, Human Rights Campaign, National LGBTQ Task Force, SAGE (organization), and health organizations including AIDS Healthcare Foundation and Los Angeles LGBT Center. International partnerships include ties with the Australian Lesbian and Gay Archives, the Lesbian and Gay Archives of New South Wales, and activist networks connected to figures like Peter Tatchell and events such as the WorldPride festivals.

Preservation and digitization

Conservation and digitization projects prioritize fragile materials from collections related to early activists and movements, including papers of Harry Hay, oral histories with Del Martin and Phyllis Lyon, photographic archives of Vito Russo, and audiovisual recordings documenting ACT UP demonstrations and AIDS Memorial Quilt displays. Digitization grants and technical collaborations have been pursued with the Getty Research Institute, the Council on Library and Information Resources, the National Endowment for the Humanities, and university partners like UCLA and USC to preserve film reels, magnetic audio, and born-digital records from campaigns involving Harvey Milk, Ellen DeGeneres, and RuPaul Charles. Ongoing preservation follows standards from the Society of American Archivists and employs metadata practices compatible with catalogs at the Library of Congress and Digital Public Library of America.

Category:LGBT archives