Gay queens nyc

overview

Jackson Heights, where the Queens Pride Parade takes place annually, has had a gay presence since it was developed in the 1920s. This collection highlights the neighborhood’s diverse LGBT history through bars and clubs (particularly significant to Latino New Yorkers) as well as sites of social gathering and political activism.

While much of Recent York City’s known LGBT history and life centers on Manhattan, we are currently working on adding more sites throughout Queens to our website. If you have a suggestion, please fill out our online form.

This theme was made possible by the Fresh York State Council on the Arts with the support of Governor Andrew M. Cuomo and the New York State Legislature, and a grant from Con Edison.

Header Photo

Members of Las Buenas Amigas on the corner of 84th Street and 37th Avenue, third annual Queens Pride Parade, June 4, 1995 (cropped). Photo by and courtesy of Richard Shpuntoff.

About us.

Queens Center for Homosexual Seniors provides a culturally-rich environment where older adults can engage with peers, make new friends, relish a hot meal, hold physically active, learn modern skills and explore modern interests, and give advocate through volunteer opportunities. Review out our services and programs:

• Affordable breakfast and lunch, served fresh everyday
• Free Transportation to and from center
• Cultural programs led by professional instructors, including multimedia art & writing courses
• Educational workshops & events
• Field trips and special events
• Exercise classes, including yoga, Zumba, chair aerobics and more
• Access to a wide variety of FREE services including Adult ESOL Classes, Immigration Support Services, Housing & Eviction Prevention Assistance, Afterschool Programs & Camps, and so much more!

Stay up-to-date with our monthly schedule, available here.

Connect with us online.

We utilize Instagram and Facebook to stay connected with our participants. Follow us today!

Instagram: @QueensCenter4GaySeniors
Facebook: @QueensCenterForGaySeniors

Stop by for a visit.

We're located inside the Jewish Center for Jackson Heights.

Our a

Friend’s Tavern

History

Friend’s Tavern (popularly referred to as Friend’s) has been in business at this location since 1989 and is considered the oldest operating gay bar in Queens. The modest storefront itself pre-dates Friend’s, with the exception of the business sign, which, at one time, included the slogan, “There is always time for friends.”

The block is owned by Puerto Rican-born Eduardo “Eddie” Valentin and Colombian-born Casimiro Villa, who are business partners and former personal partners (and they remain close friends). Fond other nearby bars on and around Roosevelt Road, Friend’s caters primarily to the LGBT Latino people. Valentin, who along with Villa also operates the nearby Club Evolution, has called this stretch of Roosevelt Avenue “the lgbtq+ Village for Latinos,” in reference to the historically gay white enclave of Greenwich Village in Manhattan. Though Jackson Heights’ LGBT community was predominantly light dating back to the 1920s, many gay Hispanics moved in as part of a large influx of Latino immigrants in the 1970s and 1980s.

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