Lesbian Health Resource Center records, 1987-2005

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Restrictions:
Access restricted. Membership and participation lists are closed by donor request until 2030. Access note. Some materials in this collection are electronic records that require special equipment....
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Summary

Creator:
Lesbian Health Resource Center
Abstract:
Durham-based community organization that provided health advice and workshops for lesbians. Successor to the North Carolina Lesbian and Gay Health Project, founded in 1982. The LHRC opened in 1996. Collection includes administrative materials, grant and funding applications, volunteer orientation agendas, and a resource library maintained by the LHRC during the 1990s. Topics include mental and physical health for lesbians, in particular HIV/AIDS prevention, breast cancer prevention and screenings, and safe sex practices. Also includes materials about the LHRC's plans for a Lesbian Health Clinic in North Carolina, its ongoing relationships with other community organizations, and workshop materials on feminism, health, and leadership. Membership and participation lists are closed until 2030. Acquired as part of the Sallie Bingham Center for Women's History and Culture.
Extent:
4.5 Linear Feet (3375 items)
607 Megabytes (Materials extracted from 35 3.5" floppy disks and 1 internal hard drive. Approximately 20,000 digital files.)
Language:
Material in English
Collection ID:
RL.00812

Background

Scope and content:

The records of the LHRC are in many was a continuation of the records from the North Carolina Lesbian and Gay Health Project, also held by the Bingham Center. Early materials frequently reference or were created by NCLGHP members, and there are also overlapping interests with some resources for gay men, despite the fact that the majority of the materials are targeted towards the lesbian community and their activities in the Triangle.

The grant materials and other financial files that make up the first series include applications, correspondence, and general information about the budget of the LHRC and the grants that it sought for programs and operations. Also included in this series are materials from the 501(c)3 application, as well as some correspondence from the IRS regarding the organization's tax status.

The LHRC's Lesbian Health Clinic files detail the planning and fundraising by the organization in preparation for opening the LHC. This series includes correspondence, steering committee minutes, handouts from different fundraising and awareness events, and other notes and research about healthcare and the operation of a health clinic.

The collection's subject files are largely drawn from the LHRC Resource Library, which was maintained by the LHRC for use by its members. Topics include healthcare, particularly women's health and lesbian health; cancer, especially breast cancer; AIDS and the spread of HIV; safe sex; domestic violence; parenting; homophobia, especially within the medical community; and other topics like health reading materials or other resources.

Some of the LHRC's activities and events are documented in the fourth series, including information and planning materials from the NCGLHP's participation in the Breast Cancer Leadership Summit and subsequent breast cancer awareness events in the early 1990s. Other activities represented include North Carolina Pride Days, breastcasting, a lesbian sex group, and general healthcare workshops.

Finally, the administrative files relate to the running of the LHRC, including everything from document masters for letterhead and logos to the volunteer orientation materials from orientations as late as 2005. Also includes some information from partner organizations, including the Mautner Project, Lesbian Avengers, and local community organizations including Triange Community Works. Related to this series is the Oversize Materials series, which consists of two document masters for posters promoting awareness about breast cancer and AIDS in the lesbian community.

The Restricted series is closed until 2030 and consists mainly of membership and participation lists. The collection's electronic records are also in the restricted series due to the intermixed nature of restricted and unrestricted content throughout the digital files.

Acquired as part of the Sallie Bingham Center for Women's History and Culture.

Biographical / historical:

The LHRC was a nonprofit organization founded in 1996 to provide educational workshops and resource materials on all health issues for women who partner with women. It was the successor organization to the North Carolina Lesbian and Gay Health Project, whose records the Sallie Bingham Center also holds. The NCLGHP was founded in 1982 to combat homophobia in existing health care institutions, and to provide gay men and lesbians the means to assume control over their own health care.

Acquisition information:
The Lesbian Health Resource Center Records were received by the David M. Rubenstein Rare Book Manuscript Library as a gift in 2010 and 2011.
Processing information:

Processed by Meghan Lyon, January 2011

Encoded by Meghan Lyon, January 2011

Additions processed and encoded by Carrie Mills, July 2011

Electronic records processed by [Matthew] Farrell, October 2024

Materials may not have been ordered and described beyond their original condition.

Rules or conventions:
Describing Archives: A Content Standard

Contents

Using These Materials

Using These Materials Links:

Using These Materials

Restrictions:

Access restricted. Membership and participation lists are closed by donor request until 2030.

Access note. Some materials in this collection are electronic records that require special equipment. Contact Research Services with questions.

Terms of access:

The copyright interests in this collection have not been transferred to Duke University. For more information, consult the copyright section of the Regulations and Procedures of the David M. Rubenstein Rare Book & Manuscript Library.

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Preferred citation:

[Identification of item], Lesbian Health Resource Center Records, David M. Rubenstein Rare Book & Manuscript Library, Duke University

Permalink:
https://idn.duke.edu/ark:/87924/m1td17