Close Friends Collective formed in the summer of 2021 to help Henry Street Settlement celebrate Pride, and they’ve been leading sold out queer history walking tours ever since. They are educators, historians, and artists with a passion for public history. With partners including Henry Street, Bluestockings Cooperative and Green-Wood Cemetery, they create zines, produce historical readings, and lead walking tours on a wide range of queer histories.

Their collaborative approach, with each tour led by at least two educators, allows them to facilitate meaningful dialogue. Telling stories across periods and historical identities, they use the past to explore contemporary questions and build queer community.

They have produced zines that have been featured in the NY Queer Zine Fair, the East Village Zine Fair and at their partner bookstore, Bluestockings Cooperative. And they have programmed a variety of public history events, including an annual Valentine’s Day Gay Love Letters reading.