GAPIMNY Records

Founded in 1990, GAPIMNY (formerly known as Gay Asian Pacific Islander Men of New York) is an all-volunteer, membership-based community organization with the mission to empower queer and trans Asian/Pacific/Americans to create positive change. It provides a range of political, social, educational, and cultural programming, and works in coalition with other community organizations to educate and promote dialogue on issues of race, sexuality, gender, and health.

Throughout its history, GAPIMNY has actively engaged in LGBTQ and A/P/A rights advocacy and coalition-building. GAPIMNY has also partnered with other organizations to lead workshops and sponsor public programs on issues such as visibility, immigration, public health, and marriage equality. Such collaborations include the Asian American Legal Defense and Education Fund (AALDEF), Asian Pacific American Coalition for Equality (APACE), Asian Media Watchdog, and Asian Queers United for Action (AQUA). Other programs and campaigns include participation in Chinatown’s Lunar New Year Parade; continued protests over various instances of racial discrimination, homophobia, or transphobia; and DowneTime, a young adult support program to provide a confidential space to discuss identity issues, attend health workshops, and connect with other members of the community. In an effort to be more inclusive, the organization changed its name in 2018 – from Gay Asian Pacific Islander Men of New York to GAPIMNY.

The GAPIMNY Records span from 1994 to 2020. Materials in the collection include pamphlets, flyers, stickers, photographs, newsletters, correspondence, meeting memoranda, and artifacts that were used in parades or demonstrations. The collection also includes magazines, literary journals, and materials produced by related organizations. This collection documents both individual activists and community organizations that have supported GAPIMNY.

To learn more about the contents of the GAPIMNY Records, located at the NYU Tamiment Library & Robert F. Wagner Labor Archives, view the collection’s finding aid.

Image: Photograph of a protest co-led by GAPIMNY outside of the Details magazine office, 2004; GAPIMNY Records; TAM 675; Box: 4; Tamiment Library/Robert F. Wagner Labor Archives, New York University.