Our History

The first gay and lesbian movement started organizing in the early 1950’s. The Mattachine Society in LA (1951) and Daughter of Bilitis in San Francisco (1955) are two examples. In the early 1970’s, LGBTQ+ communities around the country were beginning to emerge out of the anti-war and feminist movements. Universities across the United States began to register a new type of student organization called Gay Alliances. 

In Santa Cruz, LGBTQ+ folks rode on this wave of radical change and in 1975 organized our first annual Gay Pride Festival. Fifteen years later, in 1989, a real building was leased to offer a home and resource center to the LGBTQ+ community under the name The Santa Cruz Lesbian and Gay Community Center (now known as The Diversity Center). The Diversity Center has been a major part of LGBTQ+ life on the Central Coast ever since.

Upon its initial founding, The Diversity Center’s focus was responding to the AIDS epidemic which was decimating the gay, queer, and trans community. As time moved on, the focus of TDC broadened to address discrimination of the LGBTQ+ community at large. Now, we focus on improving the well-being of youth, trans, and senior members of the LGBTQ+ community while also educating the public about LGBTQ+ issues. We remain the only LGBTQ+-focused nonprofit organization in the County.