The New York Public Library Celebrates Pride Month with Special Programming, Reading Recommendations, and Research Resources

Celebrations include the Library’s annual Anti-Prom for teens, a new Library After Hours on Queer Magic, an NYPL presence at the NYC Pride March, and much more for all ages.

The New York Public Library commemorates Pride Month through June with a spotlight on our important archival materials and programming that celebrate LGBTQIA+ voices and history. 

In addition to a wide range of events, NYPL staff will join the iconic NYC Pride March on June 28. Marching behind the “Libraries Are for Everyone” banner, library workers will hand out freebies to the public, including bookmarks and stickers.

“As a gay man and proud member of the LGBTQ+ community, I am especially thrilled to announce The New York Public Library’s robust lineup of Pride programming,” said NYPL President Anthony W. Marx. “Whether it’s our Library After Hours celebration of ‘Queer Magic’—inspired by the Library’s world-renowned LGBTQ+ research collections—NYPL’s welcoming ‘Anti-Prom’ parties for teens, or any of our engaging branch programs and events, these Pride offerings ensure that there is truly something for everyone to celebrate our history and community. We invite all of you to join us this month.”

Public Programs for Pride Month

On June 5, The Library After Hours returns for a one-night-only celebration of Queer Magic. Inspired by the Library’s LGBTQ+ Initiative—which stewards one of the world’s premier collections of queer history—this special event highlights the weird, wonderful, and mysterious intersections of queerness and magic. Patrons can explore a curated display of the  Library’s research collections, enjoy themed games and crafts, as well as purchase snacks and drinks while dancing the night away to music by DJ Eugene Tambourine. Admission is free for patrons 21 and over with a valid ID. Library After Hours is sponsored by Uniqlo.

Created by young adult librarians in 2004, NYPL celebrates over 20 years of Anti-Prom—a casual, affordable, and highly inclusive alternative to traditional prom culture. Bronx Anti-Prom will be held on May 29 at Melrose Library. Manhattan Anti-Prom will be held at the flagship 42nd Street Library on July 18. Anti-Prom welcomes teens 12–18 of all sexualities, gender identities, and expressions to enjoy music, free book giveaways, and dancing. Yahoo is the Lead Sponsor of the 2026 Anti-Prom.

Highlighted programs include:

• Mon, June 1 | 5 PM at Roosevelt Island Library: Film Screening of Kinky Boots
• Tues, June 2 | 4 PM at Bloomingdale Library: “For All of Us”: Pride Book Tasting
• Fri, June 5 | 3 PM at City Island Library: “Teen Crafts: Rainbow Peace Sign Bracelets”
• Wed, June 10 | 11:15 AM at South Beach Library: Romancing the Stone Book Club: Atmosphere by Taylor Jenkins Reid
• Wed, June 10 | 4:45 PM at Ottendorfer Library: Film Screening of Milk
• Sat, June 13 |2 PM at St. George Library Center: Memory Brews & Literary Views
• Mon, June 15 | 6:30 PM at Stavros Niarchos Foundation Library (SNFL): Tillie Walden with Alexis Clements: Charity & Sylvia
• Mon, June 16 | 3 PM Baychester Teens Pride Party
• Thurs, Jun 25 | 6:30 PM at Stavros Niarchos Foundation Library (SNFL): Karen Karbiener | “I Am What I Am”: Walt Whitman, Good Gay Poet
• Sat, June 27 | 1 PM at Harry Belafonte 115th Street Library Nerdy Black Book Club: Harriet Tubman: Live in Concert by Bob the Drag Queen
• Mon, June 29 | 4 PM @ Mott Haven Library Creative Book Club

More events for all ages will be held in-person or online at neighborhood libraries across the Bronx, Manhattan, and Staten Island. For upcoming programming, recommended reads, research resources, and much more, visit the Library’s Pride Month at NYPL webpage.

The Library has one of the largest collections of LGBTQ+ history in the world. Readers can explore many of these collections online—including the published record of both academic and popular literature, rare books, little magazines, historic newspapers, at least 100,000 volumes, and over 300 archival collections. 

Readers can also explore previous lists curated by librarians that help guide, inform, and inspire New Yorkers about the LGBTQIA+ experience, including:

• Booklists for all ages
• Staff Picks: Trans, Nonbinary, and Gender Nonconforming Reads
• New & Noteworthy Queer Comics
• Lesbian Pulp Fiction and the New York City Transplant
• Pride Month Recommendations for Kids by the Teen Reading Ambassadors
• Libros infantiles y juveniles: voces transgénero, no binarias y de género disconforme

Patrons interested in LGBTQ+ perspectives and the movement for civil rights can explore the Library’s extensive holdings both in person and online through its Digital Collections. These archives document defining moments in history—such as the Stonewall Riots of 1969—offering a window into the lived experiences of the community. Additional online resources include: 

• Stonewall 50 Research Guide
• Black LGBTQ Studies Research Guide
• LGBTQ+ Jewish Studies Research Guide
• Research Methods in Early 20th-Century LGBTQIA+ History: Home
• Discover the Zine: “In Them We All Exist” created by the Schomburg Center in collaboration with the Lesbian Herstory Archives
• Barbara Gittings and Kay Tobin Lahusen Gay History Papers and Photographs
• Photographs by Diana Davies
• Particular Voices: Portraits of Gay and Lesbian Writers by Robert Giard

About The New York Public Library 

The New York Public Library is a free provider of education and information for the people of New York and beyond. With 92 locations—including research and branch libraries—throughout the Bronx, Manhattan, and Staten Island, the Library offers free materials, computer access, classes, exhibitions, programming, and more to everyone from toddlers to scholars, and has seen record numbers of attendance and circulation in recent years. The New York Public Library serves nearly 17 million patrons who come through its doors annually and millions more around the globe who use its resources at nypl.org. To offer this wide array of free programming, The New York Public Library relies on both public and private funding. Learn more about how to support the Library at nypl.org/support.