Past Events & Talks

April 5, 2026, 1pm-3pm | Steeplejack, 2400 NE Broadway, Portland, OR, 

Gather with OQHC this Easter Sunday in a space that held us when few others would.We're getting together at the former location of Metropolitan Community Church (MCC), a queer-affirming Christian denomination founded by LGBTQ+ people, specifically for LGBTQ+ people. This year is MCC Portland's 50th year by the way! 

During our Easter Sunday Social, OQHC invites you to participate in zine-panel making for our Pride 2026 zines. Build your panels from one or more of these prompts: 

- What does Pride mean to you?

-What is your Pride story?

-Interpret a story from the OQHC memory book

March 16, 2026, 7 pm-9pm | Oaks Park Roller Rink, 7805 SE Oaks Park Way, Portland, OR 97202

Looking for a wheelie good time? Join OQHC at Gay Skate next week. We're super excited to join this Oaks Park tradition, which happens every 1st & 3rd Monday at @OaksAmusementPark.

We'll be there from 7-9:30pm! Tix are $13 and available at oakspark.com/gayskate.

February 19, 2026 | Portland City Hall, 1221 SW Fourth Ave, Portland, 97204

Join OQHC in providing public testimony on Portland Resolution, Declare the City of Portland will defend the rights of transgender people and all of LGBTQIA2S+ Community. 

This is an important moment to show up at City Hall in support of our histories, our rights, our lives. Further, OQHC would love for you to not just testify in support of this resolution, but to also raise additional things Portland City Council needs to do. 

January 11, 2026, 1pm-3pm | Steeplejack, 2400 NE Broadway, Portland, OR 

We’re so excited for our 2026 Calendar launch happening this Sunday, January 11 at Steeplejack! Pick up your pre-order or purchase one! Have fun! 

November 11, 2025, 6 pm-9pm | Oregon Historical Society, 1200 SW Park Ave, Portland, OR 

A panel discussion with Marti Clemmon, Ellen Goldberg, Kristan Knapp, and Cayla McGrail, moderated by Sue St. Michael. 

Join us November 11, 2025 at Oregon Historical Society where elders, archivists & historians will be in conversation! This panel discussion — offered in partnership with OHS’s current exhibition, “We Were All Living a Dream”: Reflections on Twentieth-Century Lesbian Feminism through the Photography of Donna Pollach — will offer first-person memories on the life and times that Pollach documented as well as connections and changes from then to today. Doors open at 6; panel starts at 6:30. 

July 27, 2025, 3 pm | Hollywood Theatre, 4122 NE Sandy Blvd, Portland, OR 

TO WONG FOO, THANKS FOR EVERYTHING! JULIE NEWMAR (1995) takes the stage to support Oregon Queer History Collective! 100% of proceeds go to Oregon Queer History Collective’s work to document, share, and preserve local LGBTQIA2S+ history and culture.

July 26, 2025, 3:30pm -5:00 pm | Multnomah County Library Central Library Collins Gallery 

Celebrate Oregon’s LGBTQIA2S+ History with Oregon Queer History Collective and the City of Portland Archives at the opening of the exhibit Love, Life, Resistance, & Solidarity: Celebrating Oregon’s LGBTQIA2S+ History. Through community and government created documents, we showcase Oregon’s rich queer history in political activism, social change, and relationship building. The exhibit will be hosted at the Multnomah County Library Collins Gallery, July 26th-September 22nd.

Join us for the opening reception Saturday, July 26th, 2025, from 3:30-5:00 pm. Enjoy a demonstration by Textile Artist, Morrissey, whose art is featured in the exhibit, visit with community partners, and enjoy light refreshments.

July 19-20, 2025 | Tom McCall Waterfront Park 

OQHC tables Portland Waterfront Pride every year to share historical information and connect with community members! In 2025, we debuted new historical panels with information about Marie Equi, Lesbian Avengers, Parents and Friends of Lesbians and Gays (PFLAG), Metropolitan Community Church, and much much more! 

This year, OQHC also proudly accepted a grant from Sisters of Perpetual Indulgence to support our archive!

July 9, 2025, 12 pm - 2 pm| Multnomah Building, 501 SE Hawthorne, Portland, OR 

We’re very excited to be collaborating with Multnomah County on their Pride Month Celebration! The event will be held July 9, 12-2 pm at the Multnomah Building. Lunch will be provided for attendees. 

In addition to the reading of the County’s Pride Month Proclamation, OQHC will unveil an LGBTQIA2S+ history exhibit that will be hosted at the Multnomah Building.

May 29, 2025, 7pm-8:30 pm | Online 

OQHC Secretary, Alex Maresca, PhD, presents on the fight to ban conversion therapy and how an impending Supreme Court decision could impact those bans. Since 2012, a growing number of states have banned conversion therapy, citing evidence that it is harmful and ineffective. Yet today, these bans are under attack: set to be overturned by the Supreme Court later this year. This talk explores how LGBTQIA2S+ activists campaigned against conversion therapy from the 1950s to the present, what we can learn from their work, and how we can apply those lessons to the struggle for LGBTQIA2S+ rights today.

May 2025 | 5:30 - 7 pm 

We followed the yellow brick road to QSA’s Family Night! 🌈 It was such a fun time showing some of our historical buttons, pictures from past prides, & having kids spin our themed wheel to test their queer history knowledge.

April 27, 2025, 3:30 pm | Lincoln Hall, Portland State University

April 26, 2025, 1pm-4pm | City of Portland Archives 

Oregon Queer History Collective, in partnership with the City of Portland Archives, invites you to attend BETTER THAN A SHOEBOX - Preserving Your Family and Community History, a free archiving workshop that offers hands-on instruction from experienced archivists, oral history professionals, and community memory workers.

Attendees are encouraged to bring items from their family (chosen or biological) and community collections including photographs, documents, and artifacts to use as examples as they practice proper handling, labeling, and storage of their materials. Each attendee will be provided with an archival supply kit to get them started on their preservation journey!

In addition to preservation techniques, attendees will have the opportunity to scan their archival items and learn about recording oral histories to digitally preserve their stories for generations to come.

February 6, 2025, 7 pm - 9pm | Steeplejack, 2400 NE Broadway, Portland, OR 

OQHC met up Thursday at Steeplejack for our first general social meeting. We played a “mingle bingo” game, which allowed us to get to know each other and make connections. On display were many photos and flyers of Portland’s past including photographs from Darcelle’s in the 70’s  and political posters of the 80’s.