Lesbian Herstory Archives

Lesbian Herstory Archives "In Memory of the Voices We Have Lost" - "hold those things that tell our history and protect them." There is no room for hatred or bigotry at the Archives.

The Le***an Herstory Archives exists to gather, preserve and provide access to records of Le***an lives and activities. Doing this also serves to uncover and document our herstory previously denied to us by patriarchal historians in the interests of the culture that they served. The existence of the Archives will thus enable current and future generations to analyze and reevaluate the Le***an experience. We have always had, and continue to have, an expansive and inclusive understanding of Le***an. We have worked to preserve for the future the complexity of who we were and who we are. We honor and stand on our history that has always included, and continues to include, le***an women, butches, femmes, cross dressers, passing women, and those who are trans, two spirited, same-gender-loving, as well as others, all of whom at times were, and still can be, made to feel unwelcome in the world by others, sometimes even by other Le***ans. It is critically important to us that all⁠—in the most diverse and expansive understanding of the complexity of who we are⁠—feel accepted and welcomed at the Archives not disrespected or excluded. All have been and remain an important part of our community history, contributing to the building of our world. This has been the Le***an Herstory Archives position since its inception and continues to be our position.

You are cordially invited to ‘Q***r Thinking on...the Gilded Age’

Join us on Sun, Oct 11 for the third installment of l...
09/11/2026

You are cordially invited to ‘Q***r Thinking on...the Gilded Age’

Join us on Sun, Oct 11 for the third installment of littlebigworld’s beloved q***r salon series. In the spirit of HBO’s The Gilded Age, we’re riffing on q***rness, race, class, and the lasting impact of this grand era. Your humble conveners have pulled together an evening of delightful conversation and revelry.

It’s a double feature!

**Ticket includes access to BOTH events.**

PART I: Live Podcast recording
6pm - 8pm | Gladys Books & W**e

Denée Benton, Peggy Scott on The Gilded Age 
Hugh Ryan, author of When Brooklyn Was Q***r and My Bad
brittany packnett cunningham, host & EP of UNDISTRACTED and mastermind behind DA GILD

PART II: Ball x Ball, co-curated with Luna Luis Ortiz
9pm - 11pm | Saint James Libations

A remix of two Ball cultures, vogue x Vanderbilt. No longer insular worlds – one gate-kept, one refuge – at Ball x Ball we dance together under one big q***r roof.

In partnership with BLK MKT Vintage DA GILD Le***an Herstory Archives and more to be announced!

09/11/2026

We are everywhere!
Thank you Ofuchi for your excitement and stopping by the Le***an Herstory Archives all the way from Dallas, Texas. ❤️

Dallas/Fort Worth le***ans, help us out in spreading the word for the intergenerational le***ans screening on Sunday September 20th 4pm at Dallas Liberation Center for a screening of Old Le***ans, a film by Meghan McDonough (Meghan McDonough Old Le***ans). All ages are welcome :)

09/08/2026

Let the (Gay) Games begin! Amber is back to tell us about items related to the Gay Games in Special Collections. started in 1982 and are the biggest LGBTQ+ sports and culture event in the world.

The games are hosted every four years. They were held in Valencia, Spain in 2026. Athletes competed in 39 sports over 8 days. The next games will be held in Perth, Australia in 2030!

Join us on September 17th, from 6-8PM ET for a hybrid event to celebrate the release of Gavilán Rayna Russom’s latest al...
09/04/2026

Join us on September 17th, from 6-8PM ET for a hybrid event to celebrate the release of Gavilán Rayna Russom’s latest album under her alias Black Meteoric Star, WET. Rayna, whose personal collection is housed at the archives, will sit in conversation with artist and director of Bloodsisters: Leather, D***s, and Sadomasochism Michelle Handelman about the long-standing connections between electronic music and Leatherdyke culture. Rayna has said of the Black Meteoric Star project, now in its 20th year, “It’s always had this thread about creating the kind of atmosphere that exists in q***r dungeons, making music that could provide the ideal soundtrack for the kinds of SM spaces I imagined as a young person, and found as an adult.” Materials from the archive will be on view that highlight how Leatherdyke culture and electronic and dance sounds have intertwined, alongside materials from Rayna’s collection that share the visual and audio history of the Black Meteoric Star project.

Gavilán Rayna Russom is a musician artist, curator and folklorist based in NYC. Raised in Providence, Rhode Island on freestyle, rap, electro, and synth-driven funk during the breakdance era of the early 1980s, Rayna is a lifelong devotee of electronic rhythms and beats. Currently based in New York City, she has spent over two decades at the vanguard of underground sound, constantly redefining the boundaries of techno, synth, and experimental music.
Dubbed the “Counterculture Queen” by The Quietus, Rayna’s music has developed in parallel with her visual art, writing, performance, curation, and research work that celebrates themes including liberation, healing, sexuality, B**M, sound, deviance, gender expansiveness, time, memory, and the dead, all through a cultural lens. She was the artist-in-residence at Esponja, São Paulo, in 2024. She has presented works in performance, video, and installation at international institutions including Moma PS1, the Migros Museum für Gegenwartskunst, Temporäre Kunsthalle Berlin, the São Paulo Biennial, Art Basel, Art Basel Miami, the Donau Festival, Kunsthalle Zürich, Big Ears Festival, Foksall Gallery Foundation, the Center for Art, Research, and Allianc

A few weeks ago the news reached us that Valerie Itnyre had recently died. In the early 1970s Valerie and Joan Nestle li...
09/03/2026

A few weeks ago the news reached us that Valerie Itnyre had recently died.
In the early 1970s Valerie and Joan Nestle lived together in the apartment that would later become the Archives and Valerie was very involved in the work that took place those days. You can see her active here, working at a work night, meetings, joining in marches, she wrote in our newsletters- one of those was actually completely produced by Valerie, Deborah Edel and Joan Nestle. She was an dedicated member of the community. Eventually though Valerie moved away and her life followed into a different direction.
If you have any memories you would like to share, please let us know and we will make sure that they will find a place within our holdings.

Photos are from the mid and late 1970s.
1. Valerie Itnyre at the Archives.
2. Valerie at the Archives, with Prometheus, the dog.
3. During a work night at the Archives. Photo by Paula Grant.
4. At a gay pride march, Valerie, second from the right, holding the banner. Photo by Morgan Gwenwald, 1979
5. With Joan Nestle, Mabel Hampton and Deborah Edel at Bloodroot in CT.
6. The group of Archives coordinators: Valerie Itnyre, Georgia Brooks, Deborah Edel, Judith Schwarz, and Joan Nestle at a collective meeting
7. Our 3rd Newsletter with writing by Valerie.
8. Summer notes, from one of our newsletters.
9. A newspaper clipping in which Valerie gets quoted about the invisibility of le***ans
10. And from many years later, by way of the Manhattan Times News, January 2015. valerie appears in a neighborhood newspaper with photographs and quotes by the local population, about the upcoming snowstorm.

08/24/2026

And here is a recent addition to our photo collection, a photo book created by Shari Diamond, a collection of her photographs titled “A Spinal Matter.”
It is available for viewing in our back room, please take a look and let the images speak for themselves- they are beautiful and have their own story to tell.
Thank you Shari Diamond for your donation!

Join us on August 29th from 4-7pm at LHA! We will have a Screening of Inside Women Inside (20 mins) and have a surroundi...
08/22/2026

Join us on August 29th from 4-7pm at LHA! We will have a Screening of Inside Women Inside (20 mins) and have a surrounding discussion to tie the movie into current happenings on Rikers island! After the screening and discussion, the second half of the event will be a choose your own adventure. There will be an area set up for letter writing in solidarity to women inside at Rosie’s , an area to browse and engage with the materials we pulled & folks can engage with either at their own pace/leisure we will of course be there for questions/conversations. There will be art and writings from our current sisters inside for sale & all funds will go back to their commissaries! SIGN UP REQUIRED! Link in bio!

4Hands + LHA Embroidery WorkshopL*z Craft! and 4Hands Studio are hosting “Common Thread” on Monday, August 31! At this h...
08/20/2026

4Hands + LHA Embroidery Workshop
L*z Craft! and 4Hands Studio are hosting “Common Thread” on Monday, August 31! At this hands-on workshop, we will explore le***an identity through the lens of self expression. How we present and move through the world is a significant part of feeling affirmed in our identities.

Drawing upon historical context as well as self curation, we will build a closet of iconography that represents who we are as individuals and as a community. Join us for an evening of customizable machine embroidery, thoughtful discussion, and handcraft that represents our identities. See you there 🪡 🩵 💭 👕 🔎 📖 sign up required! Link in bio

Newly displayed on the LHA wall in the main room is an example of what we sometimes refer to as “activist art.” It is a ...
08/18/2026

Newly displayed on the LHA wall in the main room is an example of what we sometimes refer to as “activist art.” It is a D**e Preserver, used by the Le***an Avengers, at an action at the Alice Austen House in 1994. Alice was a le***an photographer in Staten Island whose le***an legacy was obscured and hidden for years.
The Le***an Avengers could not let that be and in 1994 they crashed the annual party at the Austen home, bringing recognition and understanding. One of the items used was the D**e Preserver. Look at the second image to see it getting prepped for the action. We love the creativity of activism!

Thanks to this and the hard work of Victoria Munro, the Alice Austen House Museum is now a thriving museum. Go check them out! And thank you Rebecca for getting this piece framed and displayed. We are all D**e Preservers!
Photos by Saskia Scheffer

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