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The Bayard Rustin

LGBTQ+ Society

The Institute’s Bayard Rustin Society is a philanthropic community of advocates who come together to advance key values central to Rustin’s legacy:

  • We value cross-generational mentorship.

  • We center Intersectionality as a lens through which we advocate for justice.

  • We value non-violent, democratic means to bring about social change

  • We honor Rustin’s belief that racial and other forms of inequality undermine the “oneness of the human family.”

  • We dare to imagine community care as a necessary part of advocacy.

  • We support and elevate courageous, strategic leadership.

Why You:

  • Because you want to be in community with other advocates to advance the conversation around LGBTQ+ Civil and Human Rights.  

  • Because you are an advocate who wants to honor the legacy of Bayard Rustin.

  • Because you believe that cultivating the next generation of advocates is central to freedom work.

The Bayard Rustin Society provides critical support for the Center’s LGBTQ+ Institute. Members have a role in shaping LBGTQ+ programming and opportunities for education and action on critical LGBTQ+ issues.   

The society is named for Bayard Rustin, a trailblazing gay civil rights leader and advisor to Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Rustin, was the key architect for the 1963 March on Washington. Despite being harassed because of his sexuality during the movement, his pioneering thought leadership supported many key Civil Rights leaders, including but not limited to A. Phillip Randolph, Brotherhood of Sleeping Car Porters, Pauli Murray and James Farmer, co-founders Congress of Racial Equality (CORE); Ella Baker, Southern Christian Leadership Conference (SCLC); and A. J. Muste, Fellowship of Reconciliation, among others.

All proceeds continue to support the cultivation of young people who are central to advancing the rights of LGBTQ+ communities, in addition to critical research and education focused on LGBTQ+ life in the American South.

Society Membership Giving LEvels

Angelic Troublemakers: $1000.00

  • Complimentary tickets to private receptions at special events (e.g., Bayard Rustin Day, Annual Symposium) 

  • Invitations to member events aligned with the legacy of Bayard Rustin

  • Quarterly Newsletter

  • Facilitated dialogues on topics chosen by Bayard Rustin Society members 

  • Opportunities to support youth programs

  • Recognition in our Annual symposium program

Courageous Changemakers: $2500.00

Annual donation would include all the above in addition to:

  • Complimentary tickets for Rustin Society table at annual Lorde-Rustin Brunch 

  • Acknowledgement on our website

  • Invitations to curated national Bayard Rustin experiences

Please visit the registration page to sign up for the Bayard Rustin Society. For information on the engagement opportunities and benefits of the Bayard Rustin Society, contact development@civilandhumanrights.org.  


We appreciate the Rustin family and their support of this membership society in Bayard Rustin’s name.