Making a Difference in LGBTQIA+ Communities

NYRR has relationships with organizations that are making impactful differences by supporting LGBTQIA+ rights and meeting community needs, including several Official Charity Partners of the TCS New York City Marathon. You can learn about these organizations via the below links to their websites to get involved or donate. 

The Audre Lorde Project

This year’s beneficiary for the Front Runners New York LGBT Pride Run, The Audre Lorde Project (ALP) is a Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Two Spirit, Trans and Gender Non Conforming People of Color center for community organizing, focusing on the New York City area. Through mobilization, education, and capacity-building, the organization works for community wellness and progressive social and economic justice. Committed to struggling across differences, ALP seeks to responsibly reflect, represent, and serve various communities. 

Initiated as an organizing effort by a coalition of LGBTSTGNC People of Color, The Audre Lorde Project was first brought together by Advocates for Gay Men of Color (a multi-racial network of gay men of color HIV policy advocates) in 1994. The vision for ALP grew out of the expressed need for innovative and unified community strategies to address the multiple issues impacting LGBTSTGNC People of Color communities.

Point of Pride

Point of Pride is a charity partner of the TCS New York City Marathon. Point of Pride was founded by the leadership of Point 5cc, a clothing and apparel company by and for trans folks. Since 2011, Point 5cc had donated a portion of proceeds of every order to an Annual Transgender Surgery Fund. Point 5cc also began one of the first and largest international chest binder donation programs as well as a breast form donation program. Demand for support from the community grew quickly, far outpacing what the small company was able to provide.

That's why Point of Pride was formed in 2016—an independent sibling non-profit organization with a dedicated team to grow fundraising efforts, help more members of the community feel affirmed and celebrated, and speak out for the need for inclusive and supportive changes in our society.

Ali Forney Center

A charity partner of the TCS New York City Marathon, Ali Forney Center (AFC) is committed to saving the lives of LGBTQ+ young people. AFC was founded in 2002 by Carl Siciliano in memory of Ali Forney. Since AFC’s launch with just six beds in a church basement, the organization has grown to become the largest agency dedicated to LGBTQ+ homeless youths in the country — assisting over 2,000 youths per year through a 24-hour Drop-In Center which provides over 70,000 meals annually, medical and mental health services through an on-site clinic, and a scattered-site housing program.

Human Rights Campaign Foundation

A charity partner of the TCS New York City Marathon, the Human Rights Campaign Foundation envisions a world where every member of the LGBTQ+ family has the freedom to live their truth without fear, and with equality under the law. They empower their 3 million members and supporters to mobilize against attacks on the most marginalized people in our community.

Men Having Babies

The international nonprofit Men Having Babies, a charity partner of the TCS New York City Marathon, is dedicated to providing gay men with educational and financial support to achieve parenthood through surrogacy. The organization’s Gay Parenting Assistance Program annually provides hundreds of couples with over $1 million in cash grants, discounts, and free services from over 70 providers.

NYC LGBT Historic Sites Project

The NYC LGBT Historic Sites Project is an award-winning cultural heritage initiative and educational resource documenting and presenting historic sites connected to the LGBT community throughout New York City. Its website, including an interactive map, features 400 diverse places that are important to LGBT history and illustrate the community’s influence on NYC and American culture. The organization’s groundbreaking work documents historic places connected to lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender people in New York City and tells the often untold story of their influence on American history and culture. 

Many other organizations are dedicated to LGBTQIA+ support as well; learn more here.